Evaluating the impact of Syrian refugees on fear of crime in Turkey

The forced migration of individuals and groups in the world has increased substantially amid extensive regional and international conflicts. A prime example is the continuing civil war in Syria, during which Turkey has become the host country for more Syrian refugees than any other country in the region. Research on fear of crime has focused mainly on fear of crime in general rather than on fear of crime being committed by specific groups of individuals with a shared identity. The current study used survey data to investigate the extent to which the general crime fear among Turkish citizens differs from their fear that Syrian refugees in the country may commit a crime. Consistent with theoretical assumptions of subgroup threats, the overall results of the study show that Turkish citizens’ relational discomfort with Syrians, their perception that Syrian refugees pose a security threat, and their encounters with Syrian refugees in their neighborhoods are significantly associated with the manifestation of fear of general and group-specific crime. Fear of both types of crime was higher among females, which is consistent with previous research; however, contrary to previous research, young people rather than elderly people were more fearful of crime.