Unemployment and Criminal Involvement: An Investigation of Reciprocal Causal Structures

Thornberry, Terence P.; Christenson, R. L.

doi:10.2307/2095283

Cited by 155 publications

(90 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…Since the latter work relates most closely to our own we will concentrate our review on this literature. For completeness, we will also discuss briefly some relevant work by sociologists (e.g., Rossi, Berk and Lenihan, 1980;Thornberry and Christenson, 1984) and psychologists (e.g., Farrington, et al, 1986;Cottfredson, 1985).…”

Section: The Second Decadementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Montmarquette and Nerlove (1985) and Thornberry and Christenson (1984) use data for general population groups. Farrington, et al (1986), Good, Pirog-Good, and Sickles (1986), Gottfredson (1985) and Thornberry and Christenson (1984) use data that contain observations for at least two time periods. Only Farrington, et al (1986) and Thornberry and Christenson (1984) have panels that extend over a number of years (four years in each instance).…”

Section: The Second Decadementioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, these authors do not use panel data techniques to estimate their models. widely with some studies failing to take account of the qualitative or limited nature of measures of criminal activity (e.g., Gottfredson ,1985;Rossi Berk and Lenihan, 1980;Thornberry and Christenson ,1984).…”

Section: The Second Decadementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Most of the recent studies either include no general deterrence variables (e.g., Good, Pirog-Good, and Sickles, Rossi, Berk and Lenihan, 1980;Thornberry and Christenson, 1984) or use measures that depend on the individual's past criminal choices (e.g. ,t4yers, 1983;Schmidt and Witte, 1984;Viscusi, l986a, 198Gb;Witte, 1980).…”

Section: The Second Decadementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Good, Pirog-Good and Sickles (1986) Rossi, Berk, and Lenihan (1980) and Schmidt and Witte (1984) identify their crime equations by assuming that variables related to job skills or job search affect the labor market variable but not criminal activity. Thornberry and Christenson (1984) obtain identification in their four year panel data study by treating the 8 crime rate and employment status for each year as separate and uncorrelated variables.…”

Section: The Second Decadementioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Deterrence, Work and Crime: Revisiting the Issues with Birth Cohort Data

Tauchen

Witte

Griesinger

1988

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In this paper we analyze the criminal behavior of a cohort sample of young men over an eight year period using random effects probit and Tobi techniques. Our major advances relate to our careful conceptualization of general deterrence, and our data. As far as we are aware, this work represents the first time that a richly specified model of criminal activity has been estimated using panel data for a general population group.We find very robust evidence for a general deterrent effect emanating from police resources. Our results regarding general deterrence are open to fewer questions than previous findings. We also find that working and going to school significantly decrease the probability of committing criminal acts and by virtually identical amounts. This similarity of effect when coupled with other findings suggests that crime does not serve mainly as a direct source of income and that incentive effects emanating from higher wages are not very strong. There is little empirical support for the "crime as work" model that has dominated economic thought regarding crime over the last two decades. More fruitful models of work and crime may result if work is conceived as having its primary effects either through preferences or -through information.

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Section: The Second Decadementioning

confidence: 99%