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    Sources of fear of crime at school: What is the relative contribution of disorder, individual characteristics, and school security?


    Schreck, Christopher and Miller, J Mitchell (2003) Sources of fear of crime at school: What is the relative contribution of disorder, individual characteristics, and school security? Journal of School Violence, 2 (4). pp. 57-79. ISSN 1538-8220

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    Abstract

    While policymakers have granted a substantial commitment of resources in order to reduce fear of crime among U.S. school students, the research literature on fear of crime at school is in its infancy. This study investigates whether school security techniques reduce or exacerbate fear of crime among students, net of community and school disorder and student characteristics. Ferraro's (1995) theory of incivilities suggests that students might perceive highly visible security as an incivility, which might increase their fear of crime. Using a nationally representative sample of American school children from the 1993 National Household Education Survey: School Safety and Discipline Component (NHES-SSD), we found that while school security efforts do not predict student fear as well as school disorder and individual student traits, many types of security correspond with a significantly greater likelihood that a student will be worried about crime while none reduce feelings of worry.
    Item Type: Article
    Keywords: School safety; crime; student fear; school violence;
    Academic Unit: Faculty of Social Sciences > Law
    Item ID: 20380
    Identification Number: 10.1300/J202v02n04_04
    Depositing User: Christopher Schreck
    Date Deposited: 19 Aug 2025 15:10
    Journal or Publication Title: Journal of School Violence
    Publisher: Taylor and Francis Group
    Refereed: Yes
    Related URLs:
    URI: https://mural.maynoothuniversity.ie/id/eprint/20380
    Use Licence: This item is available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike Licence (CC BY-NC-SA). Details of this licence are available here

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