The Socioeconomic Determinants of Crime in Ireland from 2003-2012

Abstract

This paper analyses the socioeconomic determinants of property crime and violent crime in Ireland between 2003 and 2012. The aim of the study is to determine whether individuals respond to incentives when deciding to engage in crime and whether this decision is dependent on the type of crime an individual engages in. The results of the paper support the economic theory of crime which indicates that criminals respond to incentives, particularly for property crimes. Higher detection rates have been found to reduce crime rates for property crimes while the impact on violent crimes is found to be insignificant. The socioeconomic determinants of crime tend to be more ambiguous.