I occasionally am asked how I assess the relative safety of the areas I inhabit when I travel to third world countries.
Different customs and language change societal norms, but these factors remain relatively constant no matter where you are in the world.
Take a look at this article and learn how to assess the baseline. It will help you make good decisions.
The techniques are recommended by the authors of Left of Bang, an excellent book to check out if you want to learn more about baseline behavior profiling.
The Collective Mood and You