Results from the Pilot Study on Criminal Victimization and Public Safety Perception in the Gamek à Direita neighborhood in Luanda in 2025

Abstract

This study, conducted by the Student Group for Academic Studies and Development (GEDA) of the Polytechnic Institute of Science and Technology (INSUTEC), aimed to carry out a pilot test to evaluate the effectiveness of a questionnaire on victimization and public safety perception in the Gamek à Direita neighborhood in Luanda. The pilot sought to assess the clarity, comprehension, application time, coherence, relevance, and engagement of respondents, as well as their willingness to cooperate during the questionnaire's administration. The methodology involved individual interviews followed by supervised completion of the questionnaire, allowing for the identification of wording issues, conceptual gaps, and interpretation difficulties. Observations made during the application process revealed that factors such as question clarity, topic relevance, and response time significantly influenced the quality of the data collected. Based on the findings, specific changes to the questionnaire were proposed, including adjustments to technical terms, the reformulation of ambiguous questions, and the inclusion of new relevant topics. The results reinforce the importance of the pilot phase in empirical studies, especially in sensitive urban contexts such as public safety, ensuring methodologically sound instruments adapted to the local reality.