Contributions of human and environmental factors to concerns of personal safety and crime in urban parks

The Use of Urban Parks by Older Adults in the Context of Perceived Security

“…The quality and attractiveness of urban parks, which translate directly to their use, depend on many aspects, with safety being one of the key factors, as confirmed by many studies [ 92 , 163 , 181 ]. According to Sundevall and Jansson [ 106 ], creating an inclusive public space appropriate for various age groups, including older adults, requires getting to know their habits and expectations.…”

“…The first hypothesis was that there are differences between the sense of security of older adults and other groups of urban park users. After literature review, we indicated that factors influencing the sense of security of all groups of users of urban green areas are discussed in publications to a very different extent [ 92 , 181 ]. In the case of reports regarding age, some of them show that older adults, included in the group of people with special requirements, generally have a lower sense of security than other age groups of users of public spaces [ 26 , 64 , 65 , 66 , 67 , 68 , 69 ].…”

“…It is worth noting that although attention is drawn to the impact of various factors on the sense of security on users of public spaces [ 26 , 72 , 92 , 181 ], very little research is focused directly on older adults as users of urban parks, which is so important to improve both their health and physical condition. The results of our study indicate the importance of many factors for shaping both “age friendly” and “activity friendly” urban parks, which may provide safe and barrier-free green areas crucial to encouraging the physical activity of older adults’ [ 13 ].…”

Homicide rates are spatially associated with built environment and socio-economic factors: a study in the neighbourhoods of Toronto, Canada

“… 3 3 V20: Intersections Dividing the total number of road intersections by total land area (km 2 ) Intersections provide opportunities for death by shooting, intentional car crashes or during escapes from crime scenes [ 44 ] 3 3 V21: Public secondary schools The total number of public secondary school locations/total land area (km 2 ) Schools are often examined in relation to delinquent behaviour [ 46 , 93 , 94 ] and this environment may protect youths at risk of delinquency [ 47 ] 3 3 V22: Large buildings The total number of buildings that includes >5 independent homes/total land area (km 2 ) Large, crowded buildings are more prone to all kinds of crime and violence [ 43 , 95 ] 5 3 V23: Parking lots The total number of parking lots/total land area (km2) Some studies have shown that the incidence of violent crimes, such as homicide, is higher in certain places such as parking lots [ 96 ] 2 3 V24: Subway stations The total number of subway stations/total land area (km2) According to surveys, crime rates are high near subway stations [ 97 ]. High crowds at subway stations have the potential to lead to violent crimes such as robbery that lead to homicide [ 98 ] 1 3 V25: Public parks The total number of municipality public parks/total land area (km2) Some studies have reported high rates of violence and violent crime in public parks [ 99 , 100 ] 1 3 WT Wellbeing Toronto, V ...…”

How Neighborhood Characteristics Influence Neighborhood Crimes: A Bayesian Hierarchical Spatial Analysis

“…Community safety is one of the primary indicators of a livable and sustainable city [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]. Urban space, as the highest spatial structure of human habitation and concentration, harbors great potential for human development and prosperity, but it also serves as a potential hot spot for the dark side of human nature [ 7 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 ]. Crime occurrence was never a simple A causes B type of equation but rather involves complex and convoluted socioeconomic [ 5 , 16 ], demographic [ 15 ], human psychological [ 17 , 18 , 19 ], governance [ 20 ], and even physical building environmental factors [ 2 , 3 , 6 , 7 , 9 , 21 ].…”