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Citation |
Öster A, Agell J. J. Eur. Econ. Assoc. 2007; 5(4): 752-775. |
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Copyright |
(Copyright © 2007, European Economic Association, Publisher John Wiley and Sons) |
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DOI |
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PMID |
unavailable |
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Abstract |
We use the exceptional variation in municipality-level unemployment in Sweden during the 1990s to identify the effect of unemployment on crime. Our findings are as follows: (i) There is a statistically and economically significant effect of general unemployment on the incidence of burglary, auto theft, and drug possession; (ii) we find no evidence for the popular view that youth unemployment matters for crime; (iii) prime-aged unemployment is robustly correlated with main categories of youthful crimes, a finding consistent with the idea that unstable life conditions of parents have adverse spillover effects on the life-choices of their children. (JEL: J00, K4) |