Research Review

Study Finds Elders Not More Fearful of Crime

An Indiana University of Pennsylvania criminologist has found that the fear of crime is not as prevalent in elders as it has been reported to be in previous studies.

John Lewis, PhD, a faculty member in Indiana University of Pennsylvania Department of Criminology, recently coauthored a study in Law Enforcement Executive Forum, “The Role of Environmental Indicators on the Perceptions of Crime of the Elderly.”

While earlier studies reported that fear of crime among elders is a significant problem and concern, Lewis found that the elderly are no more afraid of crime than any other age group.

“The fear of crime among the elderly has been the focus of numerous studies over the past several decades,” he says. “Unfortunately, there is little consensus among researchers and a wide swing in findings from one decade to another. Basically, earlier studies reported fear of crime among the elderly as a significant problem or concern of the elderly, but more recent research indicates the elderly are no more afraid of crime than any other age group.”

— Source: Indiana University of Pennsylvania