Psychology

What Is Safety to You? Determining an Inductive Conceptualization of Neighborhood Safety Through Centering the Voices of Community Residents

Document Type

Article

Abstract

Background: Inductive explorations of neighborhood safety are a notable gap in neighborhood effects research. Thus, the current study explores resident definitions of safety and safety threats in urban, suburban, and rural communities. Objective: To reveal urban residents’ phenomenological conceptualizations of neighborhood safety and perceptions of law enforcement as a safety support and/or a safety threat. Methods: The researchers conducted semi-structured focus groups with community residents across three counties to gather evidence of what makes them feel safe and unsafe in their communities. Findings/Conclusions: Thematic analysis generated five themes of what makes residents feel safe, what they perceived are safety threats, and what they believe law enforcement officers do to promote safety. The article concludes with implications for urban social work practice and research.

Publication Title

Urban Social Work

Publication Date

7-2022

Volume

6

Issue

2

First Page

129

Last Page

147

ISSN

2474-8684

DOI

10.1891/USW-2021-0004

Keywords

neighborhood, phenomenology, police, race, safety, urban

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