Fear of Crime & Quality of Life
Fear of crime may cause an increase in crime within a community. Although there is not a consensus in the literature around this point, it is clear that fear of crime is unwelcome and tends to negatively impact quality of life. Fear of crime is measured in this survey as the percentage of respondents indicating they feel very unsafe, or somewhat unsafe, walking alone in their area after dark.
The Statistics
Data Sources: Statistics Canada General Social Survey Victimization Cycle (Released Every Five Years) University of Waterloo Survey Research Centre Local Area Survey (Released Annually)
The Story Behind the Numbers
Levels of fear of crime in a community are expected to be relatively stable in the short term. Locally, levels of fear of crime are stable with changes within the margin of error. Comparing Waterloo Region to Ontario and Canada, the numbers are relatively similar with Waterloo Region appearing to have a slightly lower fear of crime than Canada.
Read the Community Responses:
- Fear of Crime: Perspectives from a Mayor by Mayor Carl Zehr, City of Kitchener
- Fear of fear and risk of risk by Funke Oba, Community researcher & organizer, past President of ACA-WR
- Restorative Justice reduces fear of crime by Sue Klassen, Restorative justice researcher & practitioner