An Exploration of the Relationship between Young People’s Fear of Crime and Gangs and their Psychological Wellbeing

Empirical research investigating the fear of crime has dominated the fields of psychology, criminology and sociology for decades. Although its roots lie in political and social significance, a new surge in research has begun to explore the psychological implications of this social phenomenon.

This thesis describes an investigation into the relationship between young people's fear of crime and gangs and psychological wellbeing.

A systematic review of the literature concludes that a relationship does appear to exist between fear of crime and wellbeing; however there is conflicting evidence as to the extent of this relationship, and the ability to establish a causal relationship between the two.

One important conclusion from this review was that there is a serious lack of research and evidence relating to young people, despite this demographic often described as being at increased risk both from crime and difficulties with mental health.

The empirical research was conducted in a borough of North West London with a sample of young people aged between twelve and fourteen years old.

The research adopted a quantitative design and two web-based questionnaires were administered; one to measure young people's perceptions of crime, gangs and community problems (including a measure of fear of crime and gangs), and the second to measure their psychological wellbeing.

Correlational analyses indicate that a specific fear of crime and gangs is not significantly correlated with lower psychological wellbeing.

In fact, increased fear of crime and gangs was found to be significantly associated with more prosocial behaviour, fewer conduct problems and fewer difficulties with hyperactivity.

A significant relationship was however found between more general fear in the community and lower psychological wellbeing, particularly emotional wellbeing.

Possible reasons for these findings are discussed with reference to theory and past research evidence, along with a critical appraisal of the research undertaken.