Does context matter? Older adults’ safety perceptions of neighborhood environments in Sweden

This chapter draws on two case studies on safety perceptions among older adults living in different cities in Sweden: Stockholm and Malmö. Both qualitative and quantitative methods were used in the study. Results show that older adults express signs of behavioral responses as a result of fear of crime and/or poor safety perceptions regardless of study areas and city contexts, such as distance decay strategy, and time avoidance. Findings also call for a more comprehensive discussion about the role that context (in this case, social and geographical) plays for everyday mobility and perceived safety in later life.