Are Older People Most Afraid of Crime? Revisiting Ferraro and LaGrange in Trinidad

Chadee, D. and Ditton, J. (2003) Are Older People Most Afraid of Crime? Revisiting Ferraro and LaGrange in Trinidad. British Journal of Criminology, 43(2), pp. 417-433.

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Abstract

This research paper revisits Ferraro & LaGrange's (1992) fear of crime & age study, here using survey data from the Caribbean island of Trinidad but adopting similar methods & statistical analyses. A multi-stage cluster design was used with 728 randomly selected adults. The overall simple correlations for fear of crime & age are low & negative for both males (-.16) & for females (-.04). The same is true for 17 of the 20 separate gender-victimization categories (the other 3 being statistically insignificant low positives). Self-rating of risk follows much the same pattern. The overall simple correlations for risk of victimization & age are low & negative for both males (-.16) & for females (-.03). The same is also true for 15 of the 20 separate gender-victimization categories (the other 5 being statistically insignificant low positives). Contrary to much of the literature, which suggests that the very aged are supposed to feel 'prisoners' in their own homes, here they are found to be the least afraid of all. This study offers no evidence for the proposition that the fear of crime increases, in a simple linear way, with age.

Item Type:Articles
Keywords:Age Differences, Fear of Crime, Trinidad And Tobago
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Ditton, Dr Jason
Authors: Chadee, D., and Ditton, J.
College/School:College of Social Sciences > School of Social and Political Sciences > Sociology Anthropology and Applied Social Sciences
Journal Name:British Journal of Criminology
ISSN:0007-0955

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