Skip to main content
Log in

Women’s avoidance behaviours in public transport in the Ile-de-France region

  • Original article
  • Published:
Crime Prevention and Community Safety Aims and scope

Abstract

Adaptive behaviours are an important aspect of personal safety. When feeling unsafe in public transport, women are likely to take avoidance measures. Drawing from a sample of 3188 women who participated in the victimisation survey “Cadre de vie et sécurité” (Living Environment and Security) between 2010 and 2013, this study examines whether and how female passengers in the Ile-de-France region change their routines when feeling unsafe in the transit environment. Logistic regressions were conducted to assess the relationship between avoidance behaviours, individual characteristics, transport habits, and personal safety. Results suggest that education, previous victimisation, and declared perceived safety are consistently associated with time-based and space-based avoidance. However, avoidance appears to be constrained by transport habits, such as frequency of use and riding to work.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Barjonet, P., M. Gezentsvey, and C. Mores. 2010. Perception des Risques et Choix du Mode de Transport: Approche Conceptuelle et Modélisation Prédictive. Flux 81 (3): 19–32.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bérardier, M. and C. Rizk. 2009. 5,4 Pour Cent des Atteintes aux Personnes Déclarées par les 14 Ans et Plus ont Lieu dans les Transports en Commun: Résultats des Enquêtes ‘Cadre de Vie et Sécurité’ de 2007 et 2008 sur la Victimation et le Sentiment d’Insécurité dans les Transports en Commun. Grand Angle 19. Observatoire national de la délinquance et des réponses pénales, ONDRP. https://www.inhesj.fr/sites/default/files/fichiers_site/ondrp/grand_angle/ga_19.pdf.

  • Ceccato, V. 2013. Moving safely: Crime and perceived safety in Stockholm’s Subway Stations. Lanham: Lexington.

    Google Scholar 

  • Condon, S., M. Lieber, and F. Maillochon. 2007. Feeling unsafe in public places: Understanding women’s fears. Revue Française de Sociologie 48 (5): 101–128.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • D’Arbois de Jubainville, H. and C. Vanier. 2016. Premiers Éléments d’Analyse sur le Sentiment de Sécurité dans les Transports en Commun. La Note de l’ONDRP 6. Observatoire national de la délinquance et des réponses pénales, ONDRP. https://www.inhesj.fr/sites/default/files/fichiers_site/ondrp/note/note_6.pdf.

  • Doran, B.J., and M.B. Burgess. 2011. Putting fear of crime on the map: Investigating perceptions of crime using geographic information systems. New York: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dunckel Graglia, A. 2016. Finding mobility: Women negotiating fear and violence in Mexico City’s public transit system. Gender, Place & Culture 23 (5): 624–640.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hale, C. 1996. Fear of crime: A review of the literature. International Review of Victimology 4 (2): 79–150.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dubow, F., E. McCabe, and G. Kaplan. 1979. Reactions to crime: A critical review of the literature. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gordon, M.T., and S. Riger. 1989. The female fear: The social cost of rape. New York, NY: Free Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hamilton, K., and L. Jenkins. 2000. A gender audit for public transport: A new policy tool in the tackling of social exclusion. Urban Studies 37 (10): 1793–1800.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jackson, J., and E. Gray. 2010. Functional fear and public insecurities about crime. British Journal of Criminology 50 (1): 1–22.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jaspard, M. 2011. Les violences contre les femmes. Paris: La Découverte.

    Google Scholar 

  • Keane, C. 1998. Evaluating the influence of fear of crime as an environmental mobility restrictor on women’s routine activities. Environment and Behavior 30 (1): 60–74.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Koskela, H., and R.H. Pain. 2000. Revisiting fear and place: Women’s fear of attack and the built environment. Geoforum 31 (2): 269–280.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lieber, M. 2008. Genre, Violences et Espaces Publics: La Vulnérabilité des Femmes en Question. Paris: Presses de la Fondation Nationale des Sciences Politiques.

    Google Scholar 

  • Liska, A.E., A. Sanchirico, and M.D. Reed. 1988. Fear of crime and constrained behavior: Specifying and estimating a reciprocal effects model. Social Forces 66 (3): 827–837.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Loukaitou-Sideris, A. 2006. Is it safe to walk? Neighbourhood safety and security considerations and their effects on walking. Journal of Planning Literature 20 (3): 219–232.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Loukaitou-Sideris, A., and C. Fink. 2009. Addressing women’s fear of victimization in transportation settings: A survey of U.S. transit agencies. Urban Affairs Review 44 (4): 554–587.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lynch, G., and S. Atkins. 1988. The influence of personal security fears on women’s travel patterns. Transportation 15 (3): 257–277.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pain, R.H. 1997. Social geographies of women’s fear of crime. Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers 22 (2): 231–244.

    Google Scholar 

  • Riger, S., M.T. Gordon, and R.K. LeBailly. 1982. Coping with urban crime: Women’s use of precautionary behaviors. American Journal of Community Psychology 10 (4): 369–386.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roché, S. 1993. Le Sentiment d’Insécurité. Paris: Presses Universitaires de France.

    Google Scholar 

  • Skogan, W.G., and M.G. Maxfield. 1981. Coping with crime: Individual and neighbourhood reactions. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stanko, E. 1995. Women, crime, and fear. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 539: 46–58.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Valentine, G. 1989. The geography of women’s fear. Area 21 (4): 385–390.

    Google Scholar 

  • Valentine, G. 1990. Women’s fear and the design of public space. Built environment 6 (4): 288–303.

    Google Scholar 

  • Warr, M. 2000. Fear of crime in the United States: Avenues for research and policy. Criminal Justice 4 (4): 451–489.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yavuz, N., and E.W. Welch. 2010. Addressing fear of crime in public space: Gender differences in reaction to safety measures in train transit. Urban Studies 47 (12): 2491–2515.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yu, S.-S.V., and M.J. Smith. 2014. Commuters using public transit in New York City: Using area-level data to identify neighbourhoods with vulnerable riders. Security Journal 27 (2): 194–209.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Hugo d’Arbois de Jubainville.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

d’Arbois de Jubainville, H., Vanier, C. Women’s avoidance behaviours in public transport in the Ile-de-France region. Crime Prev Community Saf 19, 183–198 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41300-017-0023-6

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/s41300-017-0023-6

Keywords

Navigation