Indicator 16.1.4 Proportion of population that feel safe walking alone around the area they live

Indicator 16.1.4: Proportion of population that feel safe walking alone around the area they live after dark

Target 16.1: Significantly reduce all forms of violence and related death rates everywhere

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)

Definition:

This indicator refers to the proportion of the adult population who feel safe walking alone in their neighbourhood after dark.

Concepts:

“Neighbourhood” – the indicator aims to capture fear of crime in the context of people’s everyday lives. It does so by limiting the area in question to the “neighbourhood” or “area they live in”. Various other formulations of local neighbourhood may be appropriate depending on cultural, physical and language context. Providing a universally applicable definition of neighborhood is challenging, as one’s neighbourhood is a subjective concept that will mean different things to different people.^[1]

“After dark”- the indicator should specifically capture respondent’s feelings and perceptions when walking alone after dark. The specific reference to darkness is important because according to research,^[2] darkness is one of the factors individuals perceive as important when assessing whether a situation is dangerous. While the specific reference to “after dark” is the preferrable wording and widely used in crime victimisation surveys,^[3] a suitable alternative wording is “at night”.^[4] Specifying an exact time of the day (e.g. 6pm), however, is not advisable as darkness (not time of day per se) is the factor that affects individuals perception of safety, and cross-national as well as seasonal variation in the onset of darkness makes it problematic to establish a universally suitable threshold to define nighttime.

Percent (%)

The indicator is based on a single survey question (‘How safe do you feel walking alone in your area/neighbourhood after dark?’) to be included in a general population survey. The question can be an add-on survey module to be incorporated into other ongoing general population surveys (such as surveys on corruption, governance, quality of life, public attitudes or surveys on other topics) or be part of dedicated surveys on crime victimisation.

Data should be collected as part of a nationally representative probability sample of adult population (this typically refers to the population aged 18 years and above) residing in the country, irrespective of legal residence status. The sampling frame and sample design should ensure that results can be disaggregated at sub-national level. It is recommended that the sample size is sufficiently large to allow for disaggregation by age, gender, ethnicity, and other relevant covariates.

The survey documentation should provide the specific wording used to collect data on perceptions of safety, enable the identification of possible discrepancies from standard definitions (e.g. no reference to “after dark” or “neighbourhood”), and allow an assessment of the overall data quality (e.g. sample size, target population, agency responsible for the data collection, etc.).

Data are collected through official nationally representative surveys. In most cases, such surveys are conducted by National Statistical Offices (NSOs). In some cases, other national institutions or other entities may conduct such surveys according to the same methodological standards.

Data are sent to UNODC by Member States, usually through national UN Survey of Crime Trends and Operations of Criminal Justice Systems (UN-CTS) Focal Points, which in most cases are national institutions responsible for data production in the area of crime and criminal justice (National Statistical Offices, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Justice, etc.).

Victimization surveys (as dedicated surveys or as modules of household surveys) are usually restricted to the general population living in households above a certain age (typically 15 or 18 years of age), while sometimes an upper age limit is also applied (typically 65, 70 or 75 years of age).

There are several limitations associated with the wording of the survey question used to measure fear of crime (‘How safe do you feel walking alone in your area/neighbourhood after dark?’). First, the question assumes that respondents do the following: (1) go out, (2) go out alone, (3) go out in their neighbourhood, and (4) go out after dark. For many respondents, the reasons for not going out alone in their neighbourhood after dark may have nothing or little to do with crime and more to do with personal and circumstantial issues, such as lack of mobility, childcare commitments, or the use of a car that allows them to travel further afield. Second, the question does not define the meaning of “neighbourhood”, which may mean different things to different respondents, even those living in the same street. Third, the question does not explicitly refer to ‘crime’, but rather it is implicit in the question. There may be other reasons unrelated to crime (e.g. wild animals, traffic, etc.) why respondents may not feel safe walking around their neighbourhood after dark.^[6]

The question used in victimization surveys is: How safe do you feel walking alone in your area/neighbourhood after dark?^[7] Answer options are typically: (1) Very safe, (2) safe, (3) unsafe (4), very unsafe, (5) I never go out alone at night/does not apply, (99) don’t know.^[8] The proportion of population that feel safe is calculated by summing up the number of respondents who feel “very safe” and “safe” and dividing the total by the total number of respondents, and multiplying by 100.

$16.1.4=\mathrm{\ }\frac{Number\mathrm{\ }of\mathrm{\ }respondents\mathrm{\ }who\mathrm{\ }feel\mathrm{\ }very\mathrm{\ }safe\mathrm{\ }or\mathrm{\ }safe\mathrm{\ }walking\mathrm{\ }alone\mathrm{\ }after\mathrm{\ }dark\mathrm{\ }in\mathrm{\ }their\mathrm{\ }neighbourhood\mathrm{\ }}{Total\mathrm{\ }number\mathrm{\ }of\mathrm{\ }survey\mathrm{\ }respondents}X100$

2024-07-29

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)

16.1.1: Number of victims of intentional homicide per 100,000 population, by sex and age

16.1.2: Conflict-related deaths per 100,000 population, by sex, age and cause

16.1.3: Proportion of population subjected to (a) physical violence, (b) psychological violence and (c) sexual violence in the previous 12 months