Gender, Perceptions of Safety and Strategic Responses among Ohio University Students

Abstract

Research on perceptions of safety in public spaces must seek a balance between paying careful attention to the effects of gender, while challenging simplistic notions of a dichotomy of fearful women and fearless men. In a study of perceptions of safety among undergraduate students at the Ohio State University, this principle was addressed by decentering fear as the object of study and focusing instead on the various strategies that women and men use to manage their perceptions of safety—including avoidance of certain situations (for example, being in specific places, or going outside after dark), precautionary measures, and assertions of confidence. Questionnaire responses and follow-up interviews indicated that most students usually felt safe on campus; however, women were more likely than men to have felt unsafe. Students used a wide range of strategies to make themselves feel safer, from staying home after dark to formulating plans for self-defense to telling themselves they had nothing to fear. While a focus on strategic responses illuminated areas of overlap in men's and women's experiences, gender differences were also striking. Men are unlikely to rely on avoidance strategies, while some women view self-imposed restrictions on activity as normal and necessary. Furthermore, many men are unwilling or unable to relate to questions about fear and safety, explicitly or implicitly reinscribing fear as a ‘women's issue’.

Investigaciones sobre las percepciones de seguridad en los espacios públicos deben buscar un equilibrio entre poner mucha atención a los efectos de género mientras que cuestione las ideas simplistas de una dicotamía de mujeres temorosas y hombres intrépidos. En un estudio sobre las percepciones de seguridad de universitarios en la universidad de Ohio, este aspecto se examinó a través de descentrando el miedo como el objeto del estudio, y en su lugar enfoca en las distintas estrategias que utilicen mujeres y hombres para manejar sus percepciones de seguridad – incluyendo evitar ciertas situaciones (por ejemplo, estar en lugares específicos o estar afuera después del anochecer), tomar medidas preventivas, y hacer asertos de confianza. Las respuestas de los cuestionarios y entrevistas complementarias indicaron que la mayoría de los universitarios sintieron seguros en el campus. Sin embargo, fue más probable que sientan las mujeres menos seguras que los hombres. Los universitarios utilizaron una gran variedad de estrategias para que sientan más seguros, desde quedarse en casa hasta formar planes de autodefensa y diciéndose a sí mismos que no haya nada de temer. Mientras el enfoque en respuestas estratégicas iluminó que algunas experiencias de mujeres y hombres coincidieron, las diferencias entre los géneros también llamó la atención. Es poco probable que dependan los hombres en estrategias de evitar, mientras las mujeres consideran que las restricciones de sus actividades sean normal y necesario. Además, muchos de los hombres no quieran o no puedan relacionar con cuestiones de miedo o seguridad, y como resultado reinscriben explícitamente o implícitamente el miedo como “un asunto femenino”.

Keywords:

• Gender
• safety
• fear
• public space
• campus

Keywords:

• Género
• miedo
• espacio público
• el campus

Acknowledgements

The author is grateful for the able guidance of Jack Nasar and Eugene McCann, the enthusiasm and honesty of the research participants, and the insightful comments of three anonymous reviewers.

Notes

1. The results of the annual General Social Survey between 1973 and 2002 show that in the United States, women are consistently more likely than men to report feeling afraid to walk alone at night in their own neighborhood. In 1973, 59% of women were afraid to do so, compared to 20% of men. In 2002 these figures were 47% and 19%, respectively (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2003).)

2. As this group was neither randomly selected nor vetted for representativeness, interviewees' responses should be viewed as useful signposts rather than easily generalizable results.

3. All interviewees are identified by pseudonyms.

4. This is a good example of safety advice that is directed toward women, thus reinforcing the notion that safety in public space is primarily a ‘women's problem’. By raising the specter of the stranger rapist, the author of the pamphlet suggests that it is ‘any woman’ (rather than the gender-neutral ‘anyone’) who is endangered if she does not pay attention to her surroundings.

5. The only exceptions were several men whose comments hinted of swagger rather than concern for personal safety—for example, a man who said he keeps a ‘set of brass knuckles in [his] pocket’ (21-year-old white male).