Rational fear or represented malaise: A crucial test of two paradigms explaining fear of crime

Sociological Perspectives

Volumn 51, Issue 3, 2008, Pages 453-471

  Elchardus, Mark ^a   De Groof, Saskia ^a   Smits, Wendy ^a  

^a VRIJE UNIVERSITEIT BRUSSEL   (Belgium)

Author keywords

Fear of crime; Feelings of insecurity; Malaise; Media; Victimization

Indexed keywords

EID: 52049093002     PISSN: 07311214     EISSN: 15338673     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1525/sop.2008.51.3.453     Document Type: Article

References (77)

1. Adams, Richard E. and Richard T. Serpe. 2000. "Social Integration, Fear of Crime, and Life Satisfaction." Sociological Perspectives 43: 605-29.
2. Altheide, David L. 1997. "The News Media, the Problem Frame, and the Production of Fear." The Sociological Quarterly 38: 647-68.
3. Anselme, Michel. 1993. "Le lien Sécuritaire: Mettre en Ordre le Désordre Quotidien" [The Security Connection: Put the Daily Disorder in Order]. Revue Internationale d'Action Communautaire 30: 29-38.
4. Bennett, Richard R. and Jeanne M. Flavin. 1994. "Determinants of Fear of Crime: The Effect of Cultural Setting." Justice Quarterly 11: 357-81.
5. Bilsky, Wolfgang, Christina Pfeiffer, and Peter Wetzels. 1993. Fear of Crime and Criminal Victimization. Stuttgart, Germany: Enke.
6. Carcach, Carlos, Peta Frampton, Kaye Thomas, and Mathew Cranich. 1995. "Explaining Fear of Crime in Queensland. " Journal of Quantitative Criminology 11: 271-87.
7. Chiricos, Ted, Sarah Eschholz, and Marc Gertz. 1997. "Crime, News and Fear of Crime: Toward an Identification of Audience Effects. "Social Problems 44: 342-57.
8. Chiricos, Ted, Kathy Padgett, and Marc Gertz. 2000. "Fear, TV News, and the Reality of Crime." Criminology 38: 755-85.
9. Covington, Jeanette and Ralph B. Taylor. 1991. "Fear of Crime in Urban Residential Neighborhoods: Implications of Between- and Within-Neighborhood Sources for Current Models." Sociological Quarterly 32: 231-49.
10. Dammert, Lucia and Mary Fran T. Malone. 2003. "Fear of Crime or Fear of Life? Public Insecurities in Chile." Bulletin of Latin American Research 22: 79-101.
11. Day, Kristen. 2001. "Constructing Masculinity and Women's Fear in Public Space in Irvine, California." Gender, Place & Culture 8: 109-27.
12. De Bens, Els and Steve Paulussen. 2004. Hoe Anders is de VRT? De "Performantie" van de Vlaamse Publieke Omroep en Vergelijkende Analyse van het Nieuws van TV1 en VTM [How Different is the VRT? The "Performance" of the Flemish Public Television Channel and Comparative News Analysis of TV1 and VTM]. Universiteit Gent, Belgium: Vakgroep Communicatiewetenschappen.
13. De Groof, Saskia. 2006. "Het (On)grijpbare Onveiligheidsgevoel. Een Exploratie van de Structuur binnen het Onveiligheidsconcept van Mannen en Vrouwen" [The (Un)graspable Feeling of Insecurity. An Exploration of the Structures in the Fear of Crime Concept of Men and Women]. Tijdschrift voor Criminologie 48: 19-34.
14. De Groof, Saskia. 2008. "And my Mama Said ... The (Relative) Parental Influence on Fear of Crime among Adolescent Girls and Boys." Youth & Society 39 (3): 267-93.
15. de Vaus, David and Sarah Wise. 1996. "The Fear of Attack: Parents' Concerns for the Safety of their Children." Family Matters 43: 34-38.
16. Ditton, Jason, Derek Chadee, Stephen Farrall, Elizabeth Gilchrist, and Jon Bannister. 2004. From imitation to intimidation. A note on the curious and changing relationship between the media, crime and fear of crime. British Journal of Criminology 44: 595-610.
17. Ditton, Jason and Stephen Farrall. 2000. The Fear of Crime. Aldershot, UK: Ashgate.
18. Elchardus, Mark, Saskia De Groof, and Wendy Smits. 2005. "Rationele Angst of Collectieve Voorstelling van Onbehagen. Een Vergelijking van Twee Paradigma's ter Verklaring van Onveiligheidsgevoelens" [Rational Fear or Collective Representation of Malaise. A Comparison of Two Paradigms Explaining Fear of Crime]. Mens & Maatschappij 80: 48-68.
19. Elchardus, Mark and Wendy Smits. 2003. "Bedreigd, Kwetsbaar en Hulpeloos: Onveiligheidsgevoel in Vlaanderen, 1998-2002" [Threatened, Vulnerable and Helpless: Fear of Crime in Flanders, 1998-2002]. Pp. 99-136 in Vlaanderen Gepeild!, edited by Ministerie van de Vlaamse Gemeenschap. Brussel, Belgium: Ministerie van de Vlaamse Gemeenschap, Administratie Planning en Statistiek.
20. Farrall, Stephen, Jon Bannister, Jason Ditton, and Elizabeth Gilchrist. 1997. "Questioning the Measurement of the 'Fear of Crime'. Findings from a Major Methodological Study." British Journal of Criminology 37: 658-79.
21. Fattah, Ezzat A. 1993. "Research on Fear of Crime: Some Common Conceptual and Measurement Problems." Pp. 45-70 in Fear of Crime and Criminal Victimization, edited by W. Bilsky, C. Pfeiffer, and P. Wetzels. Stuttgart, Germany: Enke.
22. Ferraro, Kenneth F. 1995. Fear of Crime. Interpreting Victimization Risk. Albany: State University of New York Press.
23. Ferraro, Kenneth F. and Randy L. LaGrange. 1987. "The Measurement of Fear of Crime." Sociological Inquiry 57: 70-101.
24. Gabriel, Ute and Werner Greve. 2003. "The Psychology of Fear of Crime. Conceptual and Methodological Perspectives." British Journal of Criminology 43: 600-14.
25. Gainey, Randy R. and Carole L. Seyfrit. 2001. "Fear of Crime among Rural Youth: Testing the Generality of Urban Models to Rural Areas." Sociological Focus 34: 269-86.
26. Gebotys, Robert J., Julian V. Roberts, and Bikram DasGupta. 1988. "News Media Use and Public Perception of Crime." Canadian Journal of Criminology 30: 3-16.
27. Gerbner, George and Larry Gross. 1976. "Living with Television: The Violence Profile." Journal of Communication 26: 173-99.
28. Giddens, Anthony. 1990. The Consequences of Modernity. Cambridge, UK: Polity Press.
29. Gilchrist, Elizabeth, Jon Bannister, Jason Ditton, and Stephen Farrall. 1998. "Women and the 'Fear of Crime': Challenging the Accepted Stereotype." British Journal of Criminology 38: 283-99.
30. Gilliam, Franklin D. and Shanto Iyengar. 2000. "Prime Suspects: The Influence of Local Television News on the Viewing Public." American Journal of Political Science 44: 560-73.
31. Goodey, Jo. 1997. "Boys Don't Cry. Masculinities, Fear of Crime and Fearlessness." British Journal of Criminology 37: 401-18.
32. Hale, Chris. 1996. "Fear of Crime: A Review of the Literature." International Review of Victimology 4: 79-150.
33. Heath, Linda and Kevin Gilbert. 1996. "Mass Media and Fear of Crime." American Behavioral Scientist 39: 379-86.
34. Hirsch, Paul M. 1981. "On not Learning from One's Own Mistakes. A Reanalysis of Gerbner et al.'s Findings on Cultivation Analysis." Communication Research 8: 3-37.
35. Hollander, Jocelyn A. 2001. "Vulnerability and Dangerousness: The Construction of Gender through Conversation about Violence." Gender and Society 15: 83-109.
36. Hollway, Wendy and Tony Jefferson. 1997. "The Risk Society in an Age of Anxiety: Situating Fear of Crime." British Journal of Sociology 48: 255-66.
37. Jensen, Klaus B. 1990. "Television Futures: A Social Action Methodology for Studying Interpretative Communities." Critical Studies in Mass Communication 7: 129-46.
38. Kanan, James W. and Matthew V. Pruitt. 2002. "Modelling Fear of Crime and Perceived Victimization Risk: The (In)significance of Neighborhood Integration." Sociological Inquiry 72: 527-48.
39. Kelly, Liz. 1996. "It's Everywhere: Sexual Violence as a Continuum." Pp. 191-206 in Feminism & Sexuality: A Reader, edited by S. Jackson and S. Scott. Edinburgh, UK: Edinburgh University Press.
40. Killias, Martin. 1990. "Vulnerability: Towards a Better Understanding of a Key Variable in the Genesis of Fear of Crime." Violence and Victims 5: 97-108.
41. Killias, Martin and Christian Clerici. 2000. "Different Measures of Vulnerability in their Relation to Different Dimensions of Fear of Crime." British Journal of Criminology 40: 437-50.
42. Kury, Helmut and Theodore Ferdinand. 1998. "The Victim's Experience and Fear of Crime." International Review of Victimology 5: 93-140.
43. Kury, Helmut, Joachim Obergfell-Fuchs, and Theodore Ferdinand. 2001. "Aging and the Fear of Crime: Recent Results from East and West Germany." International Review of Victimology 8: 75-112.
44. Lagrange, Hugues. 1993. "La Pacification des Moeurs à l'Épreuve" [The Pacification of Morality Put to the Test]. Déviance et Société 17: 279-289.
45. Liska, Allen E. and William Baccaglini. 1990. "Feeling Safe by Comparison: Crime in the Newspapers." Social Problems 37: 360-74.
46. Lowry, Dennis T., Josephine T. C. Nio, and Dennis W. Leitner. 2003. "Setting the Public Fear Agenda: A Longitudinal Analysis of Network TV Crime Reporting, Public Perceptions of Crime, and FBI Crime Statistics." Journal of Communication 53: 61-73.
47. Lupton, Deborah and John Tulloch. 1999. "Theorizing Fear of Crime: Beyond the Rational/Irrational Opposition." British Journal of Sociology 50: 507-23.
48. May, David C. 2001. "The Effect of Fear of Sexual Victimization on Adolescent Fear of Crime." Sociological Spectrum 21: 141-74.
49. May, David C. Deborah and Gregory R. Dunaway. 2000. "Predictors of Fear of Criminal Victimization at School among Adolescents." Sociological Spectrum 20: 149-68.
50. May, David C., Lesa Rae Vartanian, and Keri Virgo. 2002. "The Impact of Parental Attachment and Supervision on Fear of Crime among Adolescent Males." Adolescence 37: 267-87.
51. McCoy, H. Virginia, John D. Wooldredge, Francis T. Cullen, Paula J. Dubeck, and Sandra L. Browning. 1996. "Lifestyles of the Old and not so Fearful: Life Situation and Older Persons' Fear of Crime." Journal of Criminal Justice 24: 191-205.
52. Mesch, Gustavo S. 2000a. "Women's Fear of Crime: The Role of Fear for the Well-Being of Significant Others." Violence and Victims 15: 323-36.
53. Mesch, Gustavo S. 2000b. "Perceptions of Risk, Lifestyle Activities, and Fear of Crime." Deviant Behavior 21: 47-62.
54. O'Connell, Michael. 1999. "Is Irish Public Opinion towards Crime Distorted by Media Bias?" European Journal of Communication 14: 191-212.
55. Ohlsson, Stellan. 2000. "Falsifications, Anomalies and the Naturalistic Approach to Cognitive Change." Science and Education 9: 173-86.
56. Pain, Rachel H. 1995. "Elderly Women and Fear of Violent Crime: The Least Likely Victims? A Reconsideration of the Extent and Nature of Risk." British Journal of Criminology 35: 584-98.
57. Pain, Rachel H. 2001. "Gender, Race, Age and Fear in the City." Urban Studies 38: 899-913.
58. Parker, Keith D. and Melvin C. Ray. 1990. "Fear of Crime: An Assessment of Related Factors." Sociological Spectrum 10: 29-40.
59. Pleysier, Stefaan, Geert Vervaeke, and Johan Goethals. 2001. "Veiligheid: Enkele Theoretische en (Macro)Sociologische Beschouwingen" [Security: Some Theoretical and (Macro)Sociological Reflections]. Pp. 15-34 in Veiligheid, een Illusie? Theorie, Onderzoek en Praktijk, edited by J. Casselman, J. Goethals, F. Goossens, F. Hutsebaut, G. Vervaeke, and L. Walgrave. Brussel, Belgium: Uitgeverij Politeia nv.
60. Pleysier, Stefaan, Geert Vervaeke, and Johan Goethals. 2004. "Cross-Cultural Invariance and Gender Bias when Measuring 'Fear of Crime.'" International Review of Victimology 10: 245-60.
61. Romer, Daniel, Kathleen H. Jamieson, and Sean Aday. 2003. "Television News and the Cultivation of Fear of Crime." Journal of Communication 53: 88-104.
62. Rountree, Pamela W. 1998. "A Reexamination of the Crime-Fear Linkage." Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency 35: 341-72.
63. Rountree, Pamela W. and Kenneth C. Land. 1996. "Perceived Risk versus Fear of Crime: Empirical Evidence of Conceptually Distinct Reactions in Survey Data." Social Forces 74: 1353-76.
64. Scott, Hannah. 2003. "Stranger Danger: Explaining Women's Fear of Crime." Western Criminology Review 4: 203-14.
65. Skogan, Wesley G. 1993. "The Various Meanings of Fear." Pp. 131-40 in Fear of Crime and Criminal Victimization, edited by W. Bilsky, C. Pfeiffer, and P. Wetzels. Stuttgart, Germany: Enke.
66. Skogan, Wesley G. and Michael G. Maxfield. 1981. Coping with Crime. Individual and Neighborhood Reactions. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.
67. Stanko, Elizabeth A. 1988. "Fear of Crime and the Myth of the Safe Home: A Feminist Critique of Criminology." Pp. 75-88 in Feminist Perspectives on Wife Abuse, edited by K. Yllo and M. Bograd. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
68. Sutton, Robbie M. and Stephen Farrall. 2005. "Gender, Socially Desirable Responding and the Fear of Crime." British Journal of Criminology 45 (2): 212-24.
69. Taylor, Ralph B. and Margaret Hale. 1986. "Testing Alternative Models of Fear of Crime." The Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology 77: 151-89.
70. Tulloch, Marian. 1998. "Quantitative Review." Pp. 7-28 in Fear of Crime - Volume 1: Audit of the Literature and Community Programs, edited by Centre for Cultural Risk Research. Canberra, Australia: National Crime Prevention Program.
71. Tulloch, Marian. 2000. "The Meaning of Age Differences in the Fear of Crime: Combining Quantitative and Qualitative Approaches." British Journal of Criminology 40: 451-67.
72. Walgrave, S. and K. De Swert. 2002. "Does News Content Matter? The Contribution of the News Media in the Making of the Issues of the Vlaams Blok." Ethical Perspectives 9: 249-74.
73. Warr, Mark. 1984. "Fear of Victimization: Why are Women and the Elderly more Afraid?" Social Science Quarterly 65: 681-702.
74. Warr, Mark. 1987. "Fear of Victimization and Sensitivity to Risk." Journal of Quantitative Criminology 3: 29-46.
75. Warr, Mark and Christopher G. Ellison. 2000. "Rethinking Social Reactions to Crime: Personal and Altruistic Fear in Family Households." American Journal of Sociology 106: 551-78.
76. Williams, Frank P., Marilyn D. McShane, and Ronald L. Akers. 2000. "Worry about Victimization: An Alternative and Reliable Measure for Fear of Crime." Western Criminology Review 2. Retrieved December 1, 2005, from http://wcr.sonoma.edu/v2n2/williams.html
77. Williams, Paul and Julie Dickinson. 1993. "Fear of Crime: Read All about It? The Relationship between Newspaper Crime Reporting and Fear of Crime." British Journal of Criminology 33: 33-56.