Fear and criminal victimization among elderly public housing residents

Abstract

The influence of crime among the elderly was investigated in this study. The study suggests that crime prevention programs among the elderly should be implemented with some reservations. Since the risks of criminal victimization are low among the elderly, it may not be possible to reduce those rates much further, even with elaborate security programs for the elderly. On the contrary, raising the salience of crime by placing great emphasis on preventive behavior may well foster social isolation among the elderly.