Fear and the city: role of mobile services in harnessing safety and security in urban use contexts

This paper describes investigation of a mobile communication system that helps alleviate fear experienced in the urban context. In order to obtain empirically grounded insights for the concept design, urban females in their twenties and thirties and living in Bangalore, New Delhi and San Francisco, were studied. More than 200 females filled in an online survey. Extensive qualitative data for 13 participants were collected through week long diaries, semi-structured interviews, and situated participative enactment of scenarios. Fear-related concerns were voiced both in India and the U.S., suggesting that reducing fear, particularly in a pedestrian context after the onset of darkness, could be a globally applicable need. User research findings into subjective experiences of fear, contexts in which they occur, and behavioral strategies were used to design a mobile service titled ComfortZones. This concept was developed to the level of a high fidelity prototype and tested in a field trial in India. The investigation highlights further opportunities for design, particularly the notion of emphasizing positive and socially successful qualities of cities to communities concerned with their safety and security.