Victimization, Risk Perception, and the Desire to Move

A small body of research indicates that victims of personal and property crimes are more likely to change residence. Scholars assume that this decision to move after suffering victimization is driven by the increase in perceptions of risk of subsequent victimization. The current study examines the effect of victimization and perception of safety on the desire to move. Using Matsueda's Seattle Neighborhoods and Crime Survey, we test the hypothesis that risk perception increases the desire to change residence and that this effect explains the relationship between victimization and the desire to move. As expected, property victimization affected the extent to which individuals considered moving from their current home; this relationship was indirect through an increase in risk perception. However, violent victimization was not related to the desire to move.