Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-8ctnn Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-23T07:34:42.013Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Older People in Canada: Their Victimization and Fear of Crime

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 July 2011

Stephanie Hayman
Stephanie Hayman*
Affiliation:
University of Alberta
*
*Correspondence and requests for offprints should be sent to / La correspondance et les demandes de tirés-à-part doivent être adressées à: Stephanie Hayman, Ph.D. Department of Sociology 6-28 HM Tory Building University of Alberta Edmonton, AB T6G 2H4 ([email protected])
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Older people are more affected by fear of crime and the possibility of victimization, despite their being at lower risk of harm, than any other population group in Canada. Crime, victimization, and fear are not experienced uniformly among older Canadian citizens and residents, partly because older people do not form a homogeneous group. Being part of an ethnic, religious, or sexual minority, or being mentally frail, can have an impact on an individual’s perceptions and experience of risk. This analysis explores older people’s victimization and fear of crime, while it highlights the lack of consistency in the available data.

Résumé

Les personnes âgées sont davantage touchées par la peur du crime et de la victimisation, tout en étant à faible risque pour les dommages que n’importe quel autre groupe de la population canadienne. Le crime, la victimisation et la peur ne sont pas ressentis d’une manière uniforme chez les citoyens canadiens et résidents plus âgées, en partie parce que les personnes âgées ne forment pas un groupe homogène. Faire partie d’une minorité ethnique, religieuse ou sexuelle, ou d’être fragile mentalement, peuvent avoir un impact sur la perception et l’expérience du risque d’un individu. Cette analyse explore la victimisation des personnes âgées, tout en soulignant le manque de cohérence dans les données disponibles.

Keywords

crimevictimisationpeurpopulation minoritairecrimevictimisationfearminority populations
Type
Articles
Information
Canadian Journal on Aging / La Revue canadienne du vieillissement , Volume 30 , Issue 3 , September 2011 , pp. 423 - 436
Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Association on Gerontology 2011

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Action on Elder Abuse. What is Elder Abuse? Retrieved fromhttp://www.elderabuse.org.uk/About%20Abuse/What_is_abuse%20define.htmGoogle Scholar
Alberta’s Crime Reduction and Safe Communities Task Force (ACRSCTF). (2007). Keeping Communities Safe. Report and Recommendations. Retrieved fromhttp://justice.alberta.ca/programs_services/safe/PublicationsGoogle Scholar
Beauchamp, D. (2004). Sexual Orientation and Victimization. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics.Google Scholar
Bopp, M., Bopp, P., & Lane, P. (2003). Aboriginal Domestic Violence in Canada. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Aboriginal Healing Foundation.Google Scholar
Brennan, S. (2011). Self-reported spousal violence, 2009. In Family Violence in Canada: A Statistical Profile.Google Scholar
Brillon, Y. (1987). Victimization and Fear of Crime among the Elderly. Toronto, Ontario, Canada: Butterworths.Google Scholar
Brogden, M., & Nijhar, P. (2006). Crime, abuse and social harm: Towards an integrated approach. In Wahidin, A., & Cain, M. (Eds.), Aging, Crime and Society (pp. 35–52). Cullompton, England: Willan.Google Scholar
Brotman, S., Ryan, R., & Cormier, R. (2003). The health and social service needs of gay and lesbian elders and their families in Canada. The Gerontologist, 43(2), 192–202.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Brzozowski, J., Taylor-Butts, A., & Johnson, S. (2006). Victimization and Offending among the Aboriginal Population in Canada. Retrieved fromhttp://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/85-002-x/85-002-x2006003-eng.pdfGoogle Scholar
Canadian Network for the Prevention of Elder Abuse (undated). Abuse in Institutions: FAQs about Abuse in Institutions Retrieved fromhttp://www.cnpea.ca/abuse_in_institutions.pdfGoogle Scholar
Chan, W., & Mirchandani, K. (Eds.). (2002). Crimes of Colour: Racialisation and the Criminal Justice System in Canada. Peterborough, Ontario, Canada: Broadview Press Ltd.Google Scholar
Chansonneuve, D. (2007). Addictive Behaviours among Aboriginal People in Canada. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Aboriginal Healing Foundation.Google Scholar
Chartrand, L., & McKay, C. (2006). A Review of Research of Criminal victimizationVictimization and First Nations, Métis and Inuit Peoples 1990 to 2001. Retrieved fromhttp://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/pi/rs/rep-rap/2006/rr06_vic1/rr06_vic1.pdfGoogle Scholar
Chiswick, B. (1987). Immigration Policy, Source Countries and Immigrant Skills: Australia, Canada and the United States. Retrieved fromhttp://research.chicagobooth.edu/economy/research/articles/45.pdfGoogle Scholar
Cooke, M., Guimond, E., & McWhirter, J. (2008). The changing well-being of older adult registered Indians: An analysis using the Registered Indian Human Development Index. Canadian Journal on Aging/La Revue Canadienne du Vieillissement, 27(4), 385–397. doi:10.3138/cja.27.4.385.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Correctional Service of Canada. (2010). A Solid Foundation—A Vision for the Future: 20th Anniversary of Creating Choices 2010. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Correctional Service of Canada.Google Scholar
Dauvergne, M. (2010). Police-reported Hate Crime in Canada, 2008. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Statistics Canada.Google Scholar
Dauvergne, M., Scrim, K., & Brennan, S. (2008). Hate Crime in Canada, 2006. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics.Google Scholar
de Léséleuc, S., & Brzozowski, J. (2006). Victimization and Offending in Canada’s Territories 2004 and 2005. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics.Google Scholar
Department of Justice. (2009). Abuse of Older Adults: Department of Justice Canada Overview Paper. Retrieved fromhttp://canada.justice.gc.ca/eng/pi/fv-vf/facts-info/old-age/pdf/OlderAdultsOverviewPaper.pdfGoogle Scholar
Dickson-Gilmore, J., & LaPrairie, C. (2007). Will the Circle be Unbroken? Aboriginal Communities, Restorative Justice and the Challenges of Conflict and Change. Toronto, Ontario, Canada: University of Toronto Press.Google Scholar
Dion Stout, M., & Kipling, G. (2003). Aboriginal People, Resilience and the Residential School Legacy. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Aboriginal Healing Foundation.Google Scholar
Doyle, A. (2006). How not to think about crime in the media. Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice, 48(6), 867–885.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dumont-Smith, C. (2002). Aboriginal Elder Abuse in Canada. Retrieved fromhttp://www.ahf.ca/publications/research-seriesGoogle Scholar
Environics Institute. (2010). Urban Aboriginal Peoples Study. Toronto, Ontario, Canada: Environics Institute.Google Scholar
Farrall, S., & Gadd, D. (2004). The frequency of the fear of crime. British Journal of Criminology, 40(1), 127–132.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Farrall, S, Jackson, J., & Gray, E. (2009). Social Order and the Fear of Crime in Contemporary Times. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fitzgerald, R. (2008). Fear of Crime and the Neighbourhood Context in Canadian Cities. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics.Google Scholar
Fournier, S., & Crey, E. (1997). Stolen From our Embrace: The Abduction of First Nations Children and the Restoration of Aboriginal Communities. Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada: Douglas & McIntyre.Google Scholar
Gannon, M., & Mihorean, K. (2005). Criminal Victimization in Canada, 2004. Juristat, 25, no. 7. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics.Google Scholar
Garland, D. (1996). The limits of the sovereign state: Strategies of crime control in contemporary society. British Journal of Criminology, 36(4), 445–471.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Garland, D., & Sparks, R. (2000). Criminology, social theory and the challenge of our times. British Journal of Criminology, 40(2), 189–204.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hamilton, A., & Sinclair, M. (1991). Report of the Aboriginal Justice Inquiry of Manitoba. Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada: Queen’s Printer.Google Scholar
Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC). (2008). Aboriginal Demography: Population, Household and Family Projections, 2001–2026. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). Retrieved fromhttp://www.ainc-inac.gc.ca/ai/arp/es/0809/dpr/dem-eng.aspGoogle Scholar
Innes, M. (2004). Signal crimes and signal disorders: Notes on deviance as communicative action. British Journal of Sociology, 55(3), 335–355.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kearon, T., & Godfrey, B. (2007). Setting the scene: A question of history. In Walklate, S. (Ed.), Handbook of Victims and Victimology (pp. 17–36). Cullompton, England: Willan.Google Scholar
Keown, L.-A. (2010). Precautions Taken to Avoid Victimization: A Gender Perspective. Retrieved fromhttp://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/11-008-x/2010001/article/11123-eng.htmGoogle Scholar
Kirmayer, L., Brass, G., Holton, T., Paul, K., Simpson, C., & Tait, C. (2007). Suicide among Aboriginal People in Canada. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Aboriginal Healing Foundation.Google Scholar
Kohm, S. (2009). Spatial dimensions of fear in a high-crime community: Fear of crime or fear of disorder? Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice, 51(1), 1–30. doi:10.3138/cjccj.51.1.1CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Landau, T. (2006). Challenging Notions. Toronto, Ontario, Canada: Canadian Scholars’ Press Inc.Google Scholar
Law Commission of Ontario. (2008). The Law as it Affects Older Adults: Moving the Project Forward. Report on the preliminary consultation. Retrieved fromhttp://www.dawncanada.net/pdf/Older%20Adult%20PreStudy%20Consultation%20Rpt%20-%20FINAL.pdfGoogle Scholar
MacLennan, H. (1945). Two Solitudes. Toronto, Ontario, Canada: Collins.Google Scholar
Miller, J. (1996). Shingwauk’s Vision: A History of Native Residential Schools. Toronto, Ontario, Canada: University of Toronto Press.Google Scholar
Miller, J. (2000). Skyscrapers Hide the Heavens: A History of Indian-White relations in Canada (3rd ed.). Toronto, Ontario, Canada: University of Toronto Press.Google Scholar
Mirchandani, K., & Chan, W. (2002). From race and crime to racialisation and criminalisation. In Chan, W., & Mirchandani, K. (Eds.), Crimes of Colour: Racialisation and the Criminal Justice System in Canada (pp. 9–22). Peterborough, Ontario, Canada: Broadview Press Ltd.Google Scholar
National Advisory Council on Aging. (2005). Aging in Poverty in Canada. Retrieved fromhttp://dsp-psd.pwgsc.gc.ca/Collection/H88-5-3-2005E.pdfGoogle Scholar
Newspaper Audience Databank. (2010). Nadbank 2009 Study. Retrieved fromhttp://www.nadbank.comGoogle Scholar
Office of the Correctional Investigator. (2008). Speaking Notes for Mr. Howard Sapers, Correctional Investigator of Canada: Appearance before the Special Senate Committee on Aging. Retrieved fromhttp://www.oci-bec.gc.ca/comm/sp-all/sp-all20080204-eng.aspxGoogle Scholar
Ogrodnik, L. (2007). Seniors as Victims of Crime: 2004 and 2005. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics.Google Scholar
Perreault, S. (2008). Visible Minorities and Victimization, 2004. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics.Google Scholar
Perreault, S. & Brennan, S. (2010). Criminal Victimization in Canada, 2009. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics.Google Scholar
Pew Research Center. (2010). The State of the News Media 2010: An Annual Report on American Journalism. Retrieved fromhttp://pewresearch.org/pubs/1523/state-of-the-news-media-2010Google Scholar
Powell, J., & Wahidin, A. (2006). Rethinking criminology: The case of “aging” studies. In Wahidin, A., & Cain, M. (Eds.), Aging, Crime and Society (pp. 17–34). Cullompton, England: Willan.Google Scholar
Public Safety Canada. (2010a). Public Safety Minister Toews Outlines Government’s Law Enforcement Priorities at Canadian Police Association AGM. Retrieved fromhttp://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/media/nr/2010/index-eng.aspxGoogle Scholar
Public Safety Canada. (2010b) Corrections and Conditional Release Statistical Overview. Retrieved fromhttp://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/res/cor/rep/_fl/2010-ccrso-eng.pdfGoogle Scholar
Razack, S. (2000). Gendered racial violence and spatialized justice: The murder of Pamela George. Canadian Journal of Law and Society, 15(2), 91–130.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP). (1996). Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal peoples. Retrieved fromhttp://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/webarchives/20071115053257/http://www.ainc-inac.gc.ca/ch/rcap/sg/sgmm_e.htmlGoogle Scholar
Sauvé, J. (2005). Crime Statistics in Canada, 2004. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics.Google Scholar
Sinha, M. (2011). Police-reported family violence against seniors, 2009. In Family Violence in Canada: A Statistical Profile.Google Scholar
Special Senate Committee on Aging. (2009). Final Report. Canada’s Aging Population: Seizing the Opportunity. Retrieved fromhttp://www.parl.gc.ca/40/2/parlbus/commbus/senate/com-e/agei-e/rep-e/AgingFinalReport-e.pdfGoogle Scholar
Statistics Canada. (2006). Visible Minority Population and Population Group Reference Guide. Retrieved fromhttp://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2006/ref/rp-guides/visible_minority-minorites_visibles-eng.cfmGoogle Scholar
Statistics Canada. (2008a). Canada’s Ethnocultural Mosaic, 2006 Census: National Picture. Retrieved fromhttp://www12.statcan.ca/census-recensement/2006/as-sa/97-562/pdf/97-562-XIE2006001.pdfGoogle Scholar
Statistics Canada. (2008b). Ethnic Origin Reference Guide, 2006 Census. Retrieved fromhttp://www12.statcan.ca/census-recensement/2006/ref/rp-guides/ethnic-ethnique-eng.cfmGoogle Scholar
Statistics Canada. (2008c). Canada Year Book 2008. Retrieved fromhttp://www41.statcan.gc.ca/2008/ceb_r000_2008-eng.htmGoogle Scholar
Statistics Canada. (2008d). Aboriginal peoples. Retrieved fromhttp://www12.statcan.ca/census-recensement/2006/rt-td/ap-pa-eng.cfmGoogle Scholar
Statistics Canada. (2009a). The Daily 21 July 2009. Police Reported Crime Statistics. Retrieved fromhttp://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily-quotidien/090721/dq090721a-eng.htmGoogle Scholar
Statistics Canada. (2009b). Uniform Crime Reporting Survey (UCR). Retrieved fromhttp://www.statcan.gc.ca/cgi-bin/imdb/p2SV.pl?Function=getSurvey&SDDS=3302&lang=en&db=imdb&adm=8&dis=2Google Scholar
Statistics Canada. (2009c). Canada Year Book 2009. Retrieved fromhttp://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/11-402-x/2009000/pdf/front-preliminaires-eng.pdfGoogle Scholar
Statistics Canada. (2010a). The Daily 26 May 2010. Population Projections: Canada, the Provinces and Territories. Retrieved fromhttp://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily-quotidien/100526/dq100526b-eng.htmGoogle Scholar
Statistics Canada. (2010b). Canadian Internet Use Survey. Retrieved fromhttp://www40.statcan.gc.ca/l01/cst01/comm35a-eng.htmGoogle Scholar
Turcotte, M., & Schellenberg, G. (Eds.). (2007). A Portrait of Seniors in Canada, 2006. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Statistics Canada.Google Scholar
Vaillancourt, R. (2007). Fact sheet: Police-reported family violence against older adults. In Family Violence in Canada: A Statistical Profile. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Statistics Canada.Google Scholar
Wilson, J., & Kelling, G. (1982). Broken windows: The police and neighborhood safety. Atlantic Monthly, 249(3), 29–38. Retrieved fromhttp://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1982/03/broken-windows/4465/1/Google Scholar
Wilson, K., Rosenberg, M., Abonyi, S., & Lovelace, R. (2010). Aging and health: An examination of differences between older Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people. Canadian Journal on Aging/La Revue canadienne du vieillissement, 29(3), 369–382.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wright, D. (2004). Report of the Commission of Inquiry into the Death of Neil Stonechild. Retrieved fromhttp://www.justice.gov.sk.ca/stonechild/finalreport/Stonechild.pdfGoogle Scholar