Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/173386 
Year of Publication: 
2017
Series/Report no.: 
Ruhr Economic Papers No. 739
Publisher: 
RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Essen
Abstract: 
South Africa has one of the highest crime rates in the world, incurring high cost for society. The present paper examines the effect of weather shocks on various types of crime. Using a 12-year panel data set at monthly resolution on the police ward level, we demonstrate a short-term effect of warmer temperatures on violent crime and thereby offer support for the heat-aggression link as suggested by psychological research. Furthermore, we find evidence for a mid-term effect of weather on crime via agricultural income, which is in line with the economic theory of crime. Our findings have direct policy implications for the design of crime prevention strategies, in which weather forecasts could play an important role.
Subjects: 
South Africa
weather
crime
income shocks
JEL: 
C33
O55
Q54
R11
Persistent Identifier of the first edition: 
ISBN: 
978-3-86788-859-2
Document Type: 
Working Paper

Files in This Item:
File
Size
653.47 kB





Items in EconStor are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.