Safety in Private Surroundings

Safety in private surroundings. Victimization experiences and protective measures. Expectations to policy.

Topics: assessment of internal security in Germany; development of internal security in the last decade; General feeling of security in the personal environment currently and compared to ten years ago; priority of freedom or security; feeling of security on day and night-time at various locations; causes of the concern to become a victim of a crime.

Experiences and measures: personal experiences with crime and violence as well as of people in the acquaintance or kinship circle (victimization); measures of private protection against criminal acts; reasons why these precautions have not been taken so far; knowledge and use of government grants for private protection; interest in financial subsidies; knowledge of selected measures of the Federal Government for greater security in the country; assessment of enforced security measures by the Federal Government (e.g. reinforcement of security authorities, reintroduction of data retention, foot cuffs, etc.).

Expectations towards politics: trust in internal security institutions (police, constitution, prosecution, courts); responsibility for internal security (state, individual citizen); assessment of proposed security measures in the public debate (e.g. increasing police size, faster deportation of foreign offenders, stricter penalties, etc.).

Internet crime: frequency of Internet use; concerns related to Internet use; experiences with selected threats on the Internet (e.g. virus attack, fraud in an online business); assessment of data protection in Germany; weighing of freedom and security in data protection; party preference.

Demography: age; degree; highest educational degree; employment; occupational position; marital status; housing situation; owner or tenant; denomination; Income (categorized).

Additionally coded was: respondent ID; federal state; city size (Politische Gemeindegrößenklassen).