The effects of neighborhood conditions on perceptions of safety

This research investigated the relationship between neighborhood conditions and residents' expressed perceptions of safety. Previous studies had indicated that neighborhood conditions helped shape attitudes concerning neighborhood crime, but had relied on subjective measures of those conditions. The present study analyzed the relative contribution of subjective and objective indicators of local conditions to the overall assessment of safety in a sample of 305. Housing conditions were assessed using a standardized rating system. The investigation found that housing and neighborhood quality had an impact on satisfaction with the local physical environment and perceptions of safety. Victimization also had an impact on these two variables, but contrary to expectations had no significant impact on satisfaction with people in the local environment when controlling for housing quality. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.