Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/96822 
Year of Publication: 
2014
Series/Report no.: 
CESifo Working Paper No. 4747
Publisher: 
Center for Economic Studies and ifo Institute (CESifo), Munich
Abstract: 
In economic models, risk and social preferences are major determinants of criminal behavior. In criminology, low self-control is considered a fundamental cause of crime. Relating the arguments from both disciplines, this paper studies the relationship between self-control and both risk and social preferences. To exogenously vary the level of self-control, we use a well-established experimental manipulation. We find that low self-control causes less risk-averse behavior. The effect of self-control on social preferences is not significant. In sum, our findings support the proposition that low self-control is a facilitator of crime. While our study is motivated by the literature on the determinants of criminal behavior, it has important implications for dual-system models and documents endogeneity of economic preferences.
Subjects: 
criminal behavior
risk preferences
social preferences
ego-depletion
dual-system models
experiment
endogeneity of economic preferences
JEL: 
K42
H23
C91
Document Type: 
Working Paper
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