Public Space and the Feeling of (Un)Safety: Between the need for improvement and social appropriation of Urban Competence

Abstract

Safety in public spaces is less a matter of statistics and objectivity than of feelings and perception of space. Society constructs individual images of public space through subjective feelings. The triggers for this are diverse: physical environment, human behaviour, media and inequalities in participation in public space. This thesis therefore aims to find out which factors are decisive in the formation of a perception of space in relation to Subjective Safety. In addition, possible measures for the prevention of Feelings of Unsafety in public spaces are elaborated. In order to achieve these goals, this thesis is based on a literature review and three empirical survey methods. In the selected case study of a medium-sized town in Lower Saxony, Barsinghausen, an online survey was carried out to collect decisive factors for Feelings of (Un)Safety. Aiming to find out the significance of media in the area of analysis, an examination of the local press was appended. To obtain the perspective of the planners and consequently the initiators of preventive measures, an expert discussion was also held with representatives of the city planning and city administration of Barsinghausen. The evaluation of the results shows that although components of the physical environment, such as clarity, visibility and brightness, are decisive for safe perceptions in public spaces, it is increasingly human behaviour and media coverage that influence Subjective Safety. Here, differences between the sexes man and woman are particularly noticeable. Preventive planning measures by the city in a structural-architectural context alone are not sufficient to generally ensure increased safety perceptions in public space. The construction of safe feelings is also related to the development of social and urban competence within society, but urban planning is able to trigger this.