NCJ Number
87813
Journal
Social Problems Volume: 30 Issue: 2 Dated: (December 1982) Pages: 240-245
Date Published
1982
Length
6 pages
Annotation
Study data do not support previous assertions that fear of crime is the most serious problem facing the elderly, and there is no evidence that social support reduces the negative effects of fear on well-being.
Abstract
A 1979 needs assessment survey of the elderly in Ramsey County, Minn., which contains the city of St. Paul, provided the secondary data set for the study (Mattessich, 1980). A random sample of residential blocks was chosen, and each household within a chosen block was canvassed to locate elderly respondents. In all, 1,228 respondents aged 60 and over were interviewed. Twenty-eight percent of the sample was aged 75 and over. The independent variable, fear of crime, was indicated by responses to questions inquiring about how safe respondents felt being out alone in their neighborhoods in the day and at night. Openended questions focused on respondents' perceptions of their biggest ongoing problems and worries. The dependent variables of neighborhood satisfaction, morale, and involuntary isolation were dichotomized. Multiple classification analysis was used to analyze the data. Only 1 percent of the sample indicated fear of crime to be a serious personal problem or worry, thus contrasting sharply with the widely cited Harris poll (1975) which reported that crime was the most serious personal problem of the elderly. This study showed an appreciable inverse relationship between fear of crime and two measures of well-being: neighborhood satisfaction and morale. The data also provided some support for the widespread belief that fear of crime isolates the elderly from social activities, although this relationship is much weaker than commonly thought. On the other hand, social supports which in some contexts offset the effects of stress do not counteract the effects of fear of crime among the elderly. Tabular data and 25 references are provided.