Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The Effect of Fear of Crime and Crime Victimization on Subjective Well-Being in Africa

  • Published:
Social Indicators Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

A relatively limited number of studies have examined the effect of fear of crime and crime victimization on subjective well-being. This paper examines how fear of crime and crime victimization affect the well-being of people in Africa using data from the Round 4 of the Afrobarometer Surveys conducted in 20 countries. Consistent with the findings of previous studies, results from ordered probit and OLS regressions indicate that, each of fear of crime, theft victimization, and physical assault negatively influences well-being. In addition, the paper compares men and women on the basis of these effects, and finds that while fear of crime and theft victimization are significantly correlated with the well-being of women, neither has an effect on the well-being of men. However, physical assault significantly diminishes well-being for both men and women. The paper recommends that African governments pursue public policies that would improve labor market conditions, as lower unemployment could reduce crime, and increase well-being.

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

Access this article

Log in via an institution

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

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. This variable mirrors a measure of life satisfaction based on the survey question “Taking everything into account, how satisfied is this household with the way it lives these days? 1 = Very dissatisfied, 2 = dissatisfied, 3 = neutral, 4 = satisfied, 5 = very satisfied” (see e.g., Bookwalter et al., 2011)

  2. See Dolan et al. (2008) for a detailed review.

  3. Probit regression results, where the dependent variable was dichotomized such that well-being is equal to unity if respondent indicated either “Fairly good” or “Very good” about their living conditions, and zero otherwise (not reported here) are consistent with the ordered probit and OLS results.

  4. The results are reproduced with estimates for each country on Table 5 in Appendix A. Mali is the country of reference.

  5. I thank an anonymous reviewer for raising this issue.

  6. Probit models were also run for males and females. Results (not reported here for economy of space) are consistent with those reported in Table 4.

References

  • Adams, R. E., & Serpe, R. T. (2000). Social integration, fear of crime, and life satisfaction. Sociological Perspectives, 43(4), 605–629.

  • Alan Lewis, C., Lanigan, C., Joseph, S., & De Fockert, J. (1997). Religiosity and happiness: No evidence for an association among undergraduates. Personality and Individual Differences, 22(1), 119–121.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Algan, Y., & Cahuc, P. (2013). Trust, growth and well-being: new evidence and policy implications. Elsevier: North Holland.

    Google Scholar 

  • Altheide, D. L. (2006). Terrorism and the politics of fear. Cultural Studies ↔ Critical Methodologies, 6(4), 415–439.

  • Altindag, D. T. (2012). Crime and unemployment: Evidence from Europe. International Review of Law and Economics, 32(1), 145–157.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, D., & Lochery, E. (2008). Violence and exodus in Kenya’s Rift Valley, 2008: Predictable and preventable? Journal of Eastern African Studies, 2(2), 328–343.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Becker, G. (1968). Crime and punishment: An economic approach. Journal of Political Economy, 76(2), 169–217.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bjørnskov, C. (2003). The happy few: Cross-country evidence on social capital and life satisfaction. Kyklos, 56, 3–16.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bjørnskov, C. (2008). Social capital and happiness in the United States. Applied Research in Quality of Life, 3(1), 43–62.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bjørnskov, C., Dreher, A., & Fischer, J. A. (2010). Formal institutions and subjective well-being: Revisiting the cross-country evidence. European Journal of Political Economy, 26(4), 419–430.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blanchflower, D. G., & Oswald, A. J. (2004). Well-being over time in Britain and the USA. Journal of public economics, 88(7), 1359–1386.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bookwalter, J., Fitch-Fleischmann, B., & Dalenberg, D. (2011). Understanding life-satisfaction changes in post-apartheid South Africa. MPRA Paper No. 34579.

  • Botha, F. (2013). Life satisfaction and education in South Africa: Investigating the role of attainment and the likelihood of education as a positional good. Social Indicators Research. doi:10.1007/s11205-013-0452-2.

  • Bruni, L., & Stanca, L. (2008). Watching alone: Relational goods, television and happiness. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, 65(3), 506–528.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Burdette, H. L., Wadden, T. A., & Whitaker, R. C. (2006). Neighborhood safety, collective efficacy, and obesity in women with young children. Obesity, 14(3), 518–525.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carmichael, F., & Ward, R. (2001). Male unemployment and crime in England and Wales. Economics Letters, 73(1), 111–115.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Clark, A. E., & Oswald, A. J. (1994). Unhappiness and unemployment. Economic Journal, 104(424), 648–659.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cohen, M. A. (2008). The effect of crime on life satisfaction. Journal of Legal Studies, 37(2), 325–353.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Craven, D. (1997). Sex differences in violent victimization, 1994. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice. Bureau of Justice Statistics.

    Google Scholar 

  • Davies, S., & Hinks, T. (2010). Crime and happiness amongst heads of households in Malawi. Journal of Happiness Studies, 11(4), 457–476.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Denkers, A. J. M., & Winkel, F. W. (1998). Crime victims’ well-being and fear in a prospective and longitudinal study. International Review of Victimology, 5, 141–162.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Di Tella, R., MacCulloch, R. & Ñopo, H. (2008). Happiness and beliefs in criminal environments. RES Working Paper No. 4605, Inter-American Development Bank.

  • Di Tella, R., MacCulloch, R. J., & Oswald, A. J. (2001). Preferences over inflation and unemployment: Evidence from surveys of happiness. American Economic Review, 91(1), 335–341.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Diener, E. (2000). Subjective well-being: The science of happiness and a proposal for a national index. American Psychologist, 55(1), 34–43.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dolan, P., Peasgood, T., & White, M. (2008). Do we really know what makes us happy? A review of the economic literature on the factors associated with subjective well-being. Journal of Economic Psychology, 29, 94–122. doi:10.1016/j.joep.2007.09.001.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ellison, C. G. (1991). Religious involvement and subjective well-being. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 32(1), 80–99.

  • Evans, D. J., & Fletcher, M. (2000). Fear of crime: Testing alternative hypotheses. Applied Geography, 20(4), 395–411.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Felson, R. B., & Krohn, M. (1990). Motives for rape. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 27(3), 222–242.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fernandez, K. E., & Kuenzi, M. (2010). Crime and support for democracy in Africa and Latin America. Political Studies, 58(3), 450–471.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ferraro, K. F. (1996). Women’s fear of victimization: Shadow of sexual assault? Social Forces, 75, 667–690.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ferraro, K. F., & Grange, R. L. (1987). The measurement of fear of crime. Sociological Inquiry, 57(1), 70–97.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ferrer-i-Carbonell, A., & Fijters, P. (2004). How important is methodology for the estimates of the determinants of happiness? The Economic Journal, 114, 641–659.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fischer, J. A. V. (2010). Accounting for unobserved country heterogeneity in happiness research: Country fixed effects versus region fixed effects. MPRA Paper No. 22272.

  • Francis, L. J. (1997). The psychology of gender differences in religion: A review of empirical research. Religion, 27(1), 81–96.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Francis, L. J., Ziebertz, H. G., & Lewis, C. A. (2003). The relationship between religion and happiness among German students. Pastoral psychology, 51(4), 273–281.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Frey, B. S., & Stutzer, A. (2000). Happiness, economy and institutions. The Economic Journal, 110, 918–938.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Frey, B. S., & Stutzer, A. (2002). What can economists learn from happiness research? Journal of Economic Literature, 40(2), 402–435.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Frey, B. S., & Stutzer, A. (2010). Happiness and economics: How the economy and institutions affect human well-being. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Fried, M. (1984). The structure and significance of community satisfaction. Population and Environment, 7, 61–86.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Frijters, P., & Beatton, T. (2012). The mystery of the U-shaped relationship between happiness and age. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, 82(2), 525–542.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Furedi, F. (2007). The only thing we have to fear is the ‘culture of fear’ itself. American Journal of Sociology, 32, 231–234.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gerdtham, U. G., & Johannesson, M. (2001). The relationship between happiness, health, and socio-economic factors: Results based on Swedish microdata. Journal of Socio-Economics, 30, 553–557.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gerlach, K., & Stephan, G. (1996). A paper on unhappiness and unemployment in Germany. Economics Letters, 52(3), 325–330.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ginsberg, R., & Lyche, L. F. (2008). The culture of fear and the politics of education. Educational Policy, 22(1), 10–27.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Glassner, B. (1999). The culture of fear: Why Americans are afraid of the wrong things. New York: Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Graham, C. (2011). Adaptation amidst prosperity and adversity: Insights from happiness studies from around the world. The World Bank Research Observer, 26(1), 105–137.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gustafson, P. E. (1998). Gender differences in risk perception: Theoretical and methodological perspectives. Risk Analysis, 18(6), 805–811.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hanslmaier, M. (2013). Crime, fear and subjective well-being: How victimization and street crime affect fear and life satisfaction. European Journal of Criminology, 10(5), 515–533. doi:10.1177/1477370812474545.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harnischfeger, J. (2003). The Bakassi boys: Fighting crime in Nigeria. The Journal of Modern African Studies, 41(1), 23–49.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Helliwell, J. F. (2003). How’s life? Combining individual and national variables to explain subjective well-being. Economic Modelling, 20(2), 331–360.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Helliwell, J. F., & Huang, H. (2008). How’s your government? International evidence linking good government and well-being. British Journal of Political Science, 38, 595–619.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Helliwell, J. F., & Putnam, R. D. (2004). The social context of well-being. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London: Series B, Biological Sciences, 359(1449), 1435–1446.

  • Helliwell, J. F., & Wang, S. (2013). World happiness: Trends, explanations and distribution. In J. F. Helliwell, R. Layard, & J. Sachs (Eds.), World happiness report 2013. New York: UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network.

    Google Scholar 

  • Heukamp, F., & Arino, M. (2011). Does country matter for subjective well-being? Social Indicators Research, 100(1), 155–170.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hudson, J. (2006). Institutional trust and subjective well-being across the EU. Kyklos, 59(1), 43–62.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • James, H. S, Jr. (2011). Is the just man a happy man? An empirical study of the relationship between ethics and subjective well-being. Kyklos, 64(2), 193–212.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kahneman, D., Krueger, A. B., Schkade, D., Schwarz, N., & Stone, A. A. (2006). Would you be happier if you were richer? A focusing illusion. Science, 312(5782), 1908–1910.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kawachi, I. (1999). Social capital and community effects on population and individual health. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 896(1), 120–130.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Keane, C. (1995). Victimization and fear: Assessing the role of offender and offense. Canadian Journal of Criminology, 37, 431–455.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kilpatrick, D. G., Best, C. L., Veronen, L. J., Amick, A. E., Villeponteaux, L. A., & Ruff, G. A. (1985). Mental health correlates of criminal victimization: a random community survey. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 53(6), 866–873.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Koss, M. P., Koss, P. G., & Woodruff, W. J. (1991). Deleterious effect of criminal victimization on women’s health and medical utilization. Archives of Internal Medicine, 151, 342–347.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kuroki, M. (2013). Crime victimization and subjective well-being: Evidence from happiness data. Journal of Happiness Studies, 14, 783–794. doi:10.1007/s10902-012-9355-1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • LaGrange, R. L., & Ferraro, K. F. (1989). Assessing age and gender differences in perceived risk and fear of crime. Criminology, 27(4), 697–720.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lauritsen, J. L., & Heimer, K. (2008). The gender gap in violent victimization, 1973–2004. Journal of Quantitative Criminology, 24(2), 125–147.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Layard, R. (2006). Happiness and public policy: a challenge to the profession. Economic Journal, 116(510), C24–C33.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lelkes, O. (2006). Knowing what is good for you: Empirical analysis of personal preferences and the “objective good”. The Journal of Socio-Economics, 35(2), 285–307.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lenning, E., & Brightman, S. (2009). Oil, rape and state crime in Nigeria. Critical Criminology, 17(1), 35–48.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Levitt, S. D. (1999). The changing relationship between income and crime victimization. Federal Reserve Bank of New York Economic Policy Review, 5(3), 87–98.

    Google Scholar 

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

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Michalos, A. C., & Zumbo, B. (2000). Criminal victimization and the quality of life. Social Indicators Research, 50, 245–296.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moeller, G. L. (1989). Fear of criminal victimization: The effect of neighborhood racial composition. Sociological Inquiry, 59, 208–221.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Møller, V. (2005). Resilient or resigned? Criminal victimization and quality of life in South Africa. Social Indicators Research, 72(3), 263–317.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mookerjee, R., & Beron, K. (2005). Gender, religion and happiness. The Journal of Socio-Economics, 34(5), 674–685.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moore, S. C. (2006). The value of reducing fear: An analysis using the European Social Survey. Applied Economics, 38(1), 115–117.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pokimica, J., Addai, I., & Takyi, B. K. (2012). Religion and subjective well-being in Ghana. Social Indicators Research, 106, 61–79.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Portela, M., Neira, I., & del Mar Salinas-Jiménez, M. (2013). Social capital and subjective wellbeing in Europe: A new approach on social capital. Social Indicators Research, 114, 493–511. doi:10.1007/s11205-012-0158-x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Powdthavee, N. (2005). Unhappiness and crime: Evidence from South Africa. Economica, 72(3), 531–547.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Putnam, R. (1993). Making democracy work: Civic traditions in modern Italy. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Putnam, R. (2000). Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of american community. New York: Simon & Schuster.

    Google Scholar 

  • Quann, N., & Hung, K. (2002). Victimization experience and the fear of crime. A cross-national study. In P. Nieuwbeerta (Ed.), Crime victimization in comparative perspective. Results from the International Crime Victims Survey, 1989–2000 (pp. 301–316). The Hague: NSCR, BJU.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ramsey, P. (2009). Plato and the modern American “right”: Agendas, assumptions, and the culture of fear. Educational Studies, 45(6), 572–588.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Raphael, S., & Winter-Ebmer, R. (2001). Identifying the effect of unemployment on crime. Journal of Law and Economics, 44(1), 259–283.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Reid, L. W., & Konrad, M. (2004). The gender gap in fear: Assessing the interactive effects of gender and perceived risk on fear of crime. Sociological Spectrum, 24(4), 399–425.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ross, C. E. (1993). Fear of victimization and health. Journal of Quantitative Criminology, 9(2), 159–175.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rountree, P. W. (1998). A reexamination of the crime-fear linkage. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 35(3), 341–372.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Samanni, M., & Holmberg, S. (2010). Quality of government makes people happy. Gothenburg: The Quality of Government Institute, University of Gothenburg. (Working Paper 2010:1). www.qog.pol.gu.se.

  • Shields, M., & Wheatley Price, S. (2005). Exploring the economic and social determinants of psychological well-being and perceived social support in England. Journal Royal Statistical Society, 3, 513–537.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Skogan, W. G. (1987). The impact of victimisation on fear. Crime and Delinquency, 33, 135–154.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Skogh, G. (1973). A Note on Becker’s “Crime and Punishment: An Economic Approach”. The Swedish Journal of Economics, 75(3), 305–311.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Snedker, K. A. (2012). Explaining the gender gap in fear of crime: Assessments of risk and vulnerability among New York City residents. Feminist Criminology, 7(2), 75–111.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Soares, R. (2006). The welfare cost of violence across countries. Journal of Health Economics, 25(5), 821–846.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stack, S., & Eshleman, J. R. (1998). Marital status and happiness: A 17-nation study. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 527–536.

  • Stafford, M., & Galle, O. (1984). Victimization rates, exposure to risk, and fear of crime. Criminology, 22, 173–185.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Staubli, S., Killias, M., & Frey, B. S. (2014). Happiness and victimization: An empirical study for Switzerland. European Journal of Criminology, 11(1), 57–72.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stutzer, A. (2004). The role of income aspirations in individual happiness. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, 54(1), 89–109.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Theodossiou, I. (1998). The effects of low-pay and unemployment on psychological well-being: a logistic regression approach. Journal of health economics, 17(1), 85–104.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thompkins, D. E. (2000). School violence gangs and a culture of fear. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 567(1), 54–71.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Torgler, B., & García-Valiñas, M. A. (2007). The determinants of individuals’ attitudes towards preventing environmental damage. Ecological Economics, 63(23), 536–552.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tseloni, A., & Zarafonitou, C. (2008). Fear of crime and victimization a multivariate multilevel analysis of competing measurements. European Journal of Criminology, 5(4), 387–409.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Valera, S., & Guàrdia, J. (2014). Perceived insecurity and fear of crime in a city with low-crime rates. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 38, 195–205.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Winkelmann, R. (2009). Unemployment, social capital, and subjective well-being. Journal of Happiness Studies, 10(4), 421–430.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Witter, R. A., Okun, M. A., Stock, W. A., & Haring, M. J. (1984). Education and subjective well-being: A meta-analysis. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 165–173.

  • Yates, J. (2001). An interview with Ulrich beck on fear and risk society. The Hedgehog Review, 96–107.

  • Zak, P., & Knack, S. (2001). Trust and growth. The Economic Journal, 111, 295–321.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

I wish to express my sincere gratitude to the Editor in Chief of this journal, Filomena Maggino, and two anonymous reviewers for useful comments and constructive suggestions that helped focus and strengthen the paper. I also wish to thank Afrobarometer for making their data public. All remaining errors are mine.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, University of Missouri, 327 Mumford Hall, Columbia, MO, 65211, USA

    Iddisah Sulemana

Authors
  1. Iddisah Sulemana
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Iddisah Sulemana.

Appendix

Appendix

Table 5.

Table 5 Regression results for the effect of fear of crime and crime victimization on subjective well-being
Full size table

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Sulemana, I. The Effect of Fear of Crime and Crime Victimization on Subjective Well-Being in Africa. Soc Indic Res 121, 849–872 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-014-0660-4

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-014-0660-4

Keywords

Search

Navigation