TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2001//
TI  - "If You Love Me, Keep My Commandments": A Meta-Analysis of the Effect of Religion on Crime
JO  - Journal of research in crime and delinquency
A1  - Baier, Colin J.
A1  - Wright, Bradley R. Entner
SP  - 3
EP  - 21
VL  - 38
IS  - 1
N2  - Do religious beliefs and behaviors deter criminal behavior? The existing evidence surrounding the effect of religion on crime is varied, contested, and inconclusive, and currently no persuasive answer exists as to the empirical relationship between religion and crime. In this article, the authors address this controversial issue with a meta-analysis of 60 previous studies based on two questions: (1) What is the direction and magnitude of the effect of religion on crime? (2) Why have previous studies varied in their estimation of this effect? The results of the meta-analysis show that religious beliefs and behaviors exert a moderate deterrent effect on individuals' criminal behavior. Furthermore, previous studies have systematically varied in their estimation of the religion-on-crime effect due to differences in both their conceptual and methodological approaches. (Abstract Adapted from Source: Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 2001. Copyright © 2001 by SAGE Publications)  Religious Beliefs Religion Crime Causes Deterrence Adult Crime Adult Offender Meta-Analysis 07-02<p />
LA  - 
SN  - 0022-4278
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/
ID  - ref1
ER  -