Fear of Crime - Fear of Crime As Socially Constructed

Fear of Crime As Socially Constructed

Fear of crime can also be understood from a social constructionist perspective. The term and concept of fear of crime did not, for example, enter the public or political lexicon until the mid 1960s. That is not to say individuals did not fear crime victimization prior to this period, clearly they did at various points in history to varying degrees. However it demonstrates that fear of crime only became part of a political economy when researchers began to measure and analyse it under the auspice of The US President's Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice which reported in 1967 Once fear of crime had a name it could be deployed as a political tactic in a law and order politics. It also became something that citizens could experience as an emotional response to the threat of victimisation. The formation of a 'fear of crime feedback loop' then allowed more citizens to be surveyed as fearful, more politicians to be able to use crime fear as a political issue, security products to be sold on the back of crime fear and so on in an ever increasing spiral that popularised crime fear. Moreover, once citizens were seen as being motivated by concerns about crime fear of crime could be used as a responsibilising technique to activate citizens to conduct themeselves or consume products in ways that reduce their vulnerability to crime victimisation. This approach to understanding fear of crime does not deny the experiences of individuals who fear crime victimisation but suggests that such experiences have to be understood as being intimately connected to broader socio-political contexts.