Nusikalstamumo baimės šiuolaikinėje miesto visuomenėje problematika
Problems of the Fear of Crime in the Modern Urban Society

Summary/Abstract: The article deals with the problems of the fear of crime in the modern urban society. Various types of insecurities present in big cities have increasingly become a theme of research in criminology and urban sociology. The starting point is the long established pattern of concentration of high levels of crime in urban centres. Research evidence also points to a spatially diverse patterns of crime within cities. The level of fear cannot be explained by the real threats resulting from crime. Therefore, the question arise as to whether fear of crime is not an element of the broader social concerns and anxieties? Thus, the phenomenon of the fear of crime was placed within a broader discourse about the risk in postmodern societies. In criminology it is widely assumed, that there is a direct relationship between the level of urbanization and crime. Two factors explain this phenomenon. First of all, cities, especially big cities, are perceived as crime-prone social and physical milieus. A city is a very unique type of social structure which can lead to the creation of social disorder. Secondly, urban centres are not only social structures that generate crime but also a type of social structure that impedes effective functioning of social control. The object of interest in the article was the socio-spatial aspect of the phenomenon of fear of crime. Specifically, the research focused on the urban aspect of insecurity, including the phenomenon of the fear of crime as a result of crime itself as well as different kinds of incivility. Victimization risk may cause fear of crime, which may be explained, for example, through the social control perspective at the level of social groups, stating that this fear is the result of the community feeling, informal control disintegration in the closest environment.Among the most important reasons for the popularization of the crime prevention through environmental design are the growth of interest in the reduction of crime-inducing opportunities and the (potential) protection of a victim. This tendency leads to an increase in the importance of urban planning, implementation of revitalization programmes, as well as the application of new technologies in crime prevention. In addition to the physical aspect of the environment, more and more, these programmes include socio-economic and demographic aspects as well as an active participation of local communities. The rationality of prevention activities is reinforced by the efforts to create evidence-based crime policy.

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