Journal article
Fear, Social Interactions, and Violence Mitigation
Justice quarterly, Vol.33(3), pp.481-509
04/15/2016
DOI: 10.1080/07418825.2014.928348
Abstract
The fear of crime is generally considered as a social ill that undermines dimensions of individual well-being. Prior research generally specifies the fear of crime as an outcome variable in order to understand its complex etiology. More recently, however, researchers have suggested fear has a deterrence function whereby it reduces individuals' involvement in violent encounters. This notion could hold important clues to understand the social sources of violence. We examine whether the fear of crime inhibits involvement in violent encounters, both as offender or victim, and if adjustments in routine activities explain these effects. The results suggest fear of crime reduces violence involvement, in part, by constraining routine activities. We conclude that the fear of crime appears to be a mechanism of violence mitigation that, paradoxically, bolsters physical well-being. The results are discussed with regard to their implications for criminological theory and research on interpersonal violence.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Fear, Social Interactions, and Violence Mitigation
- Creators
- Chris Melde - Indiana Criminal Justice InstituteMark T. Berg - Correspondencemark-berg@uiowa.eduFinn-Aage Esbensen - University of Missouri–St. Louis
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Justice quarterly, Vol.33(3), pp.481-509
- DOI
- 10.1080/07418825.2014.928348
- ISSN
- 0741-8825
- eISSN
- 1745-9109
- Publisher
- Taylor & Francis
- Number of pages
- 29
- Grant note
- 2003-JN-FX-0003 / National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 04/15/2016
- Academic Unit
- Sociology and Criminology; Center for Social Science Innovation; Injury Prevention Research Center; Public Policy Center (Archive)
- Record Identifier
- 9984282619502771
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