Swift Certain Fair Resource Center

  • Programs
  • SCF Evaluations
  • Newsroom
  • About
Home
|
Newsroom
|
Crime, Inequality and Subsidized Housing: Evidence from South Africa
Posted on January 13, 2022 by Kelly Smith

Crime, Inequality and Subsidized Housing: Evidence from South Africa

The economic theory of crime is supported by evidence relating to the factors that speak to the attractiveness (or lack) of legal earning opportunities. Several studies show that education is a crime-limiting factor (Lochner and Moretti, 2004; Machin et al., 2011; Chaln and Raphael, 2011; Anderson, 2014; Hjalmarsson et al., 2015; Bell et al., 2016). Other researchers have investigated low wages and unemployment as inducements to a life of crime (Raphael and Winter-Ebmer, 2001; Gould et al., 2002; Machin and Meghir, 2004; Fougere et al., 2009; Bell et al., 2018; Khanna et al., 2019; Hemet, 2020). A number of studies also estimate the effects of inequality on crime incidence. In South Africa, Demombynes and Ozler (2005) and a positive and strong correlation between inequality and property crimes using cross-sectional data. The authors show that the incidence of property offences is higher in police precincts that are relatively wealthier than their immediate neighbors. Metz and Burdina (2018) document similar results for a sample of urban centers in the United States. Bourguignon et al. (2003) further argue that the leftmost part of the income distribution disproportionately affects property crimes in Colombia. Thus, a change in income among individuals above a certain threshold would have no significant effect on mitigating crime. The same type of insight is also posited by Machin and Meghir (2004).2


2 Researchers have also sought evidence related to the effectiveness of deterrents such as the size and intensity of police activities (Levitt, 2002; Di Tella and Schargrodsky, 2004; Evans and Owens, 2007; Lin, 2009; Draca et al., 2011; DeAngelo and Hansen, 2014; Chaln and McCrary, 2018) or the magnitude and swiftness of sanctions (Liedka et al., 2006; Drago et al., 2009; Hawken and Kleiman, 2009; Johnson and Raphael, 2012). Overall, improvements in law enforcement systems are systematically linked to reductions in crime; however, sanctions appear to be a relatively weak deterrent.

Posted in Newsroom
The Role of Police in Police–Reentry Partnerships in the United States
An Evaluation of Federal Support Court in Connecticut

SIGN UP FOR UPDATES

Keep up with the latest from the Swift Certain Fair Resource Center. Subscribe to our newsletter.

Find us

Swift Certain Fair Resource Center New York University 370 Jay Street, 12th Floor Brooklyn, NY 11201 Telephone: (646) 308-0508

E-mail: info@scfcenter.org

New York University Marron Institute of Urban Management
Web Site Notice of Federal Funding and Disclaimer:
This Web site is funded in whole or in part through a grant from the Bureau of Justice Assistance, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice. Neither the U.S. Department of Justice nor any of its components operate, control, are responsible for, or necessarily endorse, this Web site (including, without limitation, its content, technical infrastructure, and policies, and any services or tools provided). SCFCenter.org - Copyright © 2023. All rights reserved.