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Abstract

Research surrounding the fear of crime, media, and its effect on fear of crime is in abundance, however the relatively new concept of social media, particularly Facebook and its relationship to a fear of crime, is under-researched.
The current study explores crime-related content on Facebook and the relationship to fear of crime. Aiming to fill a gap in the literature that addresses the relationship between consumption of crime-related content and fear of crime, surveys were disseminated to a sample of the population to investigate whether viewing crime-related content on Facebook can affect crime fears amongst residents in Portsmouth. It also explores perceptions of crime and neighbourhood characteristics. The survey uses both open and closed questions in a mixed-methods approach which enables quantitative data, and some rich, personal, qualitative data.
The findings reveal that crime-related content consumption on Facebook did not significantly contribute to a fear of crime amongst the respondents, but it did make them more aware of criminal activity, and that females were only slightly more fearful of crime than males. Further findings on neighbourhood characteristics did however produce themes that suggest certain areas of the city such as parks and alleyways are significantly related to feelings of rising crime. This study provides a basis for understanding social media viewing and crime, but further research in this field is required in order to fully understand how viewing crime content on Facebook effects individuals fears and perceptions of crime.

Course: Criminology and Forensic Studies - BSc (Hons) - C2039F

Date Deposited: 2022-08-01

URI/permalink: https://library.port.ac.uk/dissert/dis13945.html