Citation

De Donder L, De Witte N, Dury S, Buffel T, Verté D. Eur. J. Ageing 2012; 9(3): 233-242.

Affiliation

Department of Educational Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2012, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/s10433-012-0226-8

PMID

28804423

PMCID

PMC5547410

Abstract

The aim of this contribution is twofold: on one hand to examine the individual risk factors regarding feelings of unsafety among older people and on the other hand to investigate whether they differ between third-age adults (aged 60-79) and fourth-age adults (aged 80+). This study seeks to identify the relationship between demographic variables, lack of economic resources, well-being and perceived ageism on the one side and feelings of unsafety on the other. On the basis of data from the Belgian Ageing Studies (N = 26,116), it was found that fourth-age adults experienced higher levels of feelings of unsafety than third-age adults. Furthermore, hierarchical regression models indicated that gender, number of children and perceived ageism were significantly related to feelings of unsafety across the third and fourth ages. However, several individual characteristics were found to be specific to the different age groups. Conclusively, practical implications and research issues are critically discussed by emphasising the importance of tackling structural inequalities among older persons to reduce their feelings of unsafety.

Language: en

Keywords

Fear of crime; Inequality; Older adults; Vulnerability; Well-being