Under the Shadow of Apprehension: Exploring Women’s Perceptions of Public Insecurity in Tijuana, Mexico.

This article explores how the perception of crime can weigh more heavily than actual victimization, particularly among women in urban contexts marked by structural violence. It adopts a qualitative exploratory-descriptive approach, grounded in the analysis of 233 in-depth interviews with women aged 18 to 50 residing in diverse areas of Tijuana. Although national surveys such as ENDIREH and ENVIPE are referenced to frame the broader context of gender-based violence in Mexico, the study’s findings derive exclusively from qualitative fieldwork. No quantitative analysis is conducted as part of the research design. The interviews, conducted with a semi-structured guide informed by an ethnographic glossary, capture the everyday realities, fears, and strategies employed by women across generations. The narratives reveal how perceptions of violence are shaped by age, life stage, and lived experiences. Young women (18–25) describe heightened fear and distrust, often tied to direct or observed violence during formative years. Older women (46–50) articulate broader understandings of violence, encompassing psychological, institutional, and spatial dimensions. This intergenerational lens enables a deeper reading of how women make sense of insecurity and navigate their urban environments. The findings offer valuable insights for policy, feminist theory, and the development of gender-sensitive urban strategies.