Making Sense of Intersectionality and Fear of Crime: Constructions of Physical Space and Social Actors in a High Crime Area

• In Event: Crime and Victimization in Urban Areas

Abstract

Using unstructured interviews, this study contributes to the literature on fear of crime by examining fear of crime and intersectionality in order to observe the differences and similarities among residents in two high crime neighborhoods statistically viewed to be the most dangerous and unsafe zip codes within its local area. Prior studies have not adequately explored race, gender and class in relation to fear of crime. Much research that focuses on fear of crime has relied almost entirely upon quantitative data. By providing a qualitative component, this study provides detailed insight about complex relationships, experiences, and practices to understand how gender, race, and class intersect to shape and construct fear of crime. Findings reveal that factors identified in the quantitative literature as predictive of fear—like time of day/night, previous experience with victimization, and the media’s portrayal of target areas, for example—are related to community members’ perceptions of their neighborhood as safe or not. However, the overwhelming majority of residents do not report feeling afraid. Instead, both men and women use mental maps of specific spaces and people in those spaces to identify some areas as dangers and others as safe.

Authors

• Melinda Jackson, Louisiana State University

• Sarah Becker, Louisiana State University