Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/107492
Year of Publication: 
2014
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 8716
Publisher: 
Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
In this paper, we estimate the effect of workfare policy on crime by exploiting two exogenous welfare policy changes in Denmark. Our results show a strong decline in the crime rate among treated unemployment uninsured men relative to untreated uninsured and unemployment insured men, and part of this decline can be identified as a direct effect of workfare participation. Moreover, we find that criminal activity was also reduced during weekends, when the workfare programs were closed, allowing us to distinguishing the pure program effect from the incapacitation effect. These results imply a strong and potentially lasting crime reducing effect of workfare policy.
Subjects: 
crime reduction
difference-in-differences
policy experiment
secondary effects
workfare policy
workfare and crime
unemployment and crime
JEL: 
I38
K42
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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