Fear of Crime Examined Through Diversity of Crime, Social Inequalities and Social Capital. An Empirical Evaluation in Peru

Latin America is a violent region in which fear of crime (FOC) is well spread but still not fully understood. Using multilevel methods for a large and subnational representative household survey (N=271,022), we assess the determinants of FOC in Peru, the country with the highest FOC and crime victimization in the region. Our results show that body-aimed victimization (physical or sexual abuse from a member of their household, and sexual offenses) is the strongest driver of FOC, even higher than victimization committed with arms. Moreover, safety measures based on social capital are negatively related to FOC, suggesting that they are palliatives rather than real protections. Finally, people in a higher socioeconomic status are more likely to fear more because they have more to lose. Policy implications address Latin-America as a whole and punitive policies against crime are common in the region, while evidence-based decisions are scarce.