Gender-based heat map images show where men tend to look and where women tend to look on a road at night. Women focused much more on potential safety hazards (the periphery of the images), while men looked directly at focal points or the intended destination .
Summary Fear of crime can influence our view and experience of the world around us. This can be problematic for people seeking physical activity, including walking. Previous work shows that fear is especially evident among women, who say fear of rape and sexual abuse by men is their main concern. We present results from a cross-sectional survey (n = 571) in which participants were shown images of the university campus (n = 4 campuses) representing different lighting levels (daytime, nighttime) and entrapment levels (high, low That is, able to escape easily if necessary (a high level of entrapment is difficult and a low level is easy), and using the Qualtrics heat map tool, they selected the features that caught their attention the most. The data were separated by gender and analyzed to determine the similarity of the heatmaps for the same base image. The heatmap images were analyzed using canonical correlation (Rc) to determine the relationship between the two groups; scatter tests to decipher spatial uniformity within images; the Structural Similarity Index (SSIM) to characterize the nature of differences in image patterns; and the Breslow-Day test to specify pattern locations within images. Several heat map images are also presented in the results. In general, female and male participants seemed to “ see ” different things when imagining walking (as seen in the low values of Rc) and the nature of what they were seeing was different (as seen in the low values of SSIM). ). Female participants tended to focus on areas outside the walking path, such as bushes and dark areas, while males focused on the path ahead [χ2(1) = 4.29, p = 0.04]. Additionally, women were more likely to select off-trail areas for walking during high entrapment environments [χ2(1) = 15.49, p < 0.001] and at night [χ2(1) = 4.98, p = 0.02]. Our study demonstrates differences in viewpoints in evaluations of walking spaces between men and women. Viewing walking safety through the lens of lived experience could be productive for comprehensive community walking safety. |
Images : Heat maps show that men look straight ahead; women scan the periphery. Gender-based heatmap images when walking at night.
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Gender-based heat map images show where men tend to look and where women tend to look on a road at night. Women focused much more on potential safety hazards (the periphery of the images), while men looked directly at focal points or the intended destination .
A striking new study shows how different the experience of walking home at night is for women and men.
The study, led by Brigham Young University public health professor Robbie Chaney, provides clear visual evidence of the constant environmental scanning that women perform while walking in the dark, a safety consideration that the study shows is unique to their experience.
Chaney and co-authors Alyssa Baer and Ida Tovar showed participants photographs of campus areas from four Utah universities (Utah Valley University, Westminster, Brigham Young University and the University of Utah) and asked them to click on the areas in the photographs. that caught his attention. Women focused much more on potential safety hazards (the periphery of the images), while men looked directly at focal points or the intended destination.
"The resulting heat maps represent perhaps what people think, feel or do as they move through these spaces," Chaney said. “Before starting the study, we expected to see some differences, but we did not expect to see them so contrasting. “It’s really visually striking.”
Almost 600 people participated in the study, recently published in the journal Violence and Gender , with 56% of the participants being women and 44% men. Each participant looked at 16 images and was asked to imagine walking through those areas. They used a Qualtrics heat map tool to click on the areas of the image that stood out to them the most.
While men tended to focus on the path or a fixed object (such as a light, walking path, or trash can), women’s visual pattern represented a perimeter scan (bushes, dark areas next to One Way).
Chaney, along with Baer and Tovar, both BYU undergraduates at the time of the study, say the findings provide insight into what it’s like to walk home as a woman, which could multiply over years or a lifetime of experiences.
"This project has been a fantastic conversation starter to raise awareness about the lived experiences, particularly of women in this case," said Baer, who recently completed her graduate studies at George Washington University and now works in Washington, D.C. My hope is that by having concrete data we can start conversations that lead to meaningful actions.”
The authors said the data suggests that because women and men perceive and experience the environment differently , decision makers in building university and community environments must consider the diverse experiences, perceptions and safety of both.
“Why can’t we live in a world where women don’t have to think about these things? “It’s heartbreaking to hear about things that women close to me have had to deal with,” Chaney said. “It would be nice to work towards a world where there are no differences between the heat maps in these image sets. That is the hope of the public health discipline.”
Conclusions Our study demonstrates differences in viewpoints in evaluations of walking spaces between men and women. Overall, women focused on off-road areas more frequently than men, for example, which may reflect their extensive experience with fear of crime that highlights a greater fear of crime, particularly resulting personally violent or sexual crimes. from stalking, prowling, or loitering in poorly lit areas. Despite attempts to improve the environment, such as lighting, these findings likely represent a more systematic problem, extending to other areas of women’s lives. The results presented here can be a useful start to a conversation to recognize different lived experiences and begin to reclaim everyday spaces for free mobility. Viewing walking safety through the lens of lived experience could be productive in terms of holistically building community trust and shared responsibility for ourselves and others to support the safety and holistic well-being of those who travel on foot. |
