Examining the Relationship Between Media Consumption, Fear of Crime, and Support for Controversial Criminal Justice Policies Using a Nationally Representative Sample

Abstract

According to cultivation theory, higher levels of crime-based media consumption result in an increased fear of crime. This study extends cultivation theory's basic assertion by (a) creating a robust measure of media consumption based on three different factors and 38 original questions, (b) examining the direct and indirect effects of media consumption and fear of crime on support of criminal justice policies, and (c) using a nationwide sample. Using a sample of 1,311 participants, a combination of principal components analysis and structural equation modeling was used to examine these relationships. The results support the usefulness of a four-factor measure of media consumption in relationship to fear of crime. Results also reveal that fear of crime amplifies the effect of media consumption in creating support for three-strikes, death penalty, stand your ground, and open carry laws.

Public support for harm reduction: A population survey of Canadian adults

“…Finally, cultivation theory proposes that exposure to media shapes peoples’ views on policy responses to contentious social issues [ 33 ]. For example, exposure to violent media programming is positively associated with beliefs that one will become a victim of violence and also with support for punitive and retributive legislation [ 34 ]. Although not previously investigated, we hypothesize that exposure to media reporting on harm reduction will be inversely associated with stigmatized attitudes toward PWUD and positively associated with support for harm reduction.…”

How Portrayal of Child Sexual Abuse in the News Media Increases Fear of Crime Among Guardians: The Case of Greater Malé Area, Maldives

“…This is to say, they found that cultivation effects are stronger if media sources are actively accessed rather than passively accessed (Williamson et al, 2019). Adding to this, Dolliver et al (2018), who conducted a study in the United States to extend cultivation theory's premises, found that greater exposure to crime media can indeed increase fear levels and in turn this increase in fear translates for support by the public for increased punitive measures. This finding highlights that fear of crime does not necessarily stop at individual levels, but can be seen to have societal level implications as well (Dolliver et al, 2018).…”

Sense of Place and Feelings of Safety: Examining Young Adults’ Experiences of their Local Environment using Mobile Surveys

“…); perceived low levels of trust and confidence in local law enforcement and government (Gainey et al., 2011); and high amounts of news media consumption (Dolliver et al. )…”

“…Over the last 50 years, various determinants of fear of crime have been identified, including physical, situational, and social vulnerability (Chataway and Hart 2016;Covington and Taylor 1991;Jackson 2009;Killias 1990; Killias and Clerici 2000;Warr 1993); individuallevel variables such as age, gender, and income (Cops and Pleysier 2010;LaGrange, Ferraro and Supancic 1992;Sacco 1990); neighborhood disorder (Brunton- Smith and Sturgis 2011;Foster et al 2010;Innes 2004;McCrea et al 2005); weak or low community cohesion (Ferguson et al 2007;Hartnagel 1979;Markowitz et al 2001); perceived low levels of trust and confidence in local law enforcement and government (Gainey et al, 2011); and high amounts of news media consumption (Dolliver et al 2018). 2 Although researchers now have a very good understanding of the determinants of fear of crime, few have endeavored to examine the opposite outcome to fear-feelings of safety, and what may be causing a lack of concern about becoming a crime victim in a particular place.…”