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The economic analysis of offender’s choice: Old and new insights

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Abstract

The economics of crime has followed the basic Becker model (1968), according to which a criminal act results from a rational decision based on cost-benefit analysis. This paper surveys some extensions to Becker’s model, by giving some emphasis to earlier work that tries to explain differences in offender’s choice across places. At the end, the paper analyses the contribution of Steven Levitt (the new Gary Becker), which has stimulated an empirical renaissance in the economic analysis of crime. His new book (co-author Dubner) Freakonomics (2005) offers a new argument in understanding why crime fell in the 1990s in the USA.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. ISCEM European Centre (Instituto Superior de Comunicação Empresarial e Marketing), Lisboa, Portugal

    Anna Bonanno

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  1. Anna Bonanno
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Correspondence to Anna Bonanno.

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I am very grateful to an anonymous referee for his valuable comments, which improved the final version of this paper. I would also like to thank Steven Levitt for sending me his unpublished work. The usual disclaimer applies.

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Bonanno, A. The economic analysis of offender’s choice: Old and new insights. RISEC 53, 193–224 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03029584

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