NCJ Number
154494
Journal
Journal of Criminal Justice Volume: 23 Issue: 1 Dated: (1995) Pages: 29-39
Date Published
1995
Length
12 pages
Annotation
This study hypothesized that the anomic impact of unemployment on crime may be most pronounced when it disrupts and dislocates communities. Criminal offense data and official unemployment data from 1982 through 1990 were collected for Lafayette, Louisiana, a community severely affected by the decline in the domestic oil industry during the 1980's.
Abstract
A Box-Jenkins (B-J) type time series model is used to test the unemployment-crime (U-C) relationship. The data showed a statistically significant relationship between larceny and a general measure of unemployment. The relationship between arson and unemployment was weak, but statistically significant. This finding supports the notion that property owners facing economic hardship may be motivated to commit arson as a means of liquefying their assets. The proposed relationships between car theft and burglary with unemployment were not significant. 1 table, 5 figures, 11 notes, and 24 references