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British Journal of Criminology Advance Access originally published online on April 29, 2009
British Journal of Criminology 2009 49(4):472-490; doi:10.1093/bjc/azp016
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The British Journal of Criminology 49:472-490 (2009)
© The Author 2009. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies (ISTD). All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org

Guanxi and Fear of Crime in Contemporary Urban China

Lening Zhang*, Steven F. Messner, Jianhong Liu and Yue Angela Zhuo

* Direct all correspondence to Lening Zhang, Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice, Saint Francis University, Loretto, PA 15940. Voice: (814) 472–3052; Fax: (814) 472–2787; lzhang{at}francis.edu.


  Abstract

Western research has investigated individual correlates of fear of crime with a primary focus on people's vulnerability. This vulnerability model examines the possible effects on fear of indicators of people's physical vulnerability (e.g. age and gender) and social vulnerability (e.g. income and education). As is well documented in the research on China, guanxi is a unique aspect of social capital in Chinese society. The present study argues that guanxi in the immediate neighbourhood is an important indicator of the social vulnerability of individuals in urban China. We accordingly hypothesize that residents who have strong neighbourhood guanxi are less likely to be fearful of crime. This hypothesis is assessed with data collected from a recent survey in the city of Tianjin, China. The results of multilevel analysis show that guanxi in the neighbourhood is a significant predictor of fear of crime in contemporary urban China when other important factors are controlled.


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