Variables Crime and Violence

VARIABLES

The variables that I chose to assess in this case for possible correlation are poverty and crime. Poverty in this case will be discussed in the context of communal poverty. In general terms, poverty could be defined as the lack of financial resources to meet basic and other needs. It could be measured in a variety of ways. One of the most prominent ways of measuring poverty levels is income, i.e. the pre-tax income a household or individual has access to against a specific standard. It would be interesting to find out what impact poverty levels have on crime rates.

LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT

Poverty: interval level of measurement. In this case, there is equal distance between two intervals. We could, for instance, have $1 - $500; $501- $1000; $1001 – $1500 in reference to household incomes.
Crime rate: ratio rate level of measurement. In this case, it is possible to have a point with an absolute zero. Intervals are also equal. The rate of crime can be zero, effectively meaning that no crime is reported.

CORRELATION TYPE

In essence, correlation could either be negative, positive, or no-correlation (Jackson, 2007). A positive correlation essentially means that an increase in a specified variable causes an increase in the other variable. A negative correlation, on the other hand, means that as one variable increases, the other decreases. Lastly, no-correlation is used to indicate a scenario whereby an increase or decrease in a given variable causes or brings about no change in another variable.

HYPOTHESIS AND RESEARCH

In this case, I would expect there to be a positive kind of correlation between my choices of variables, i.e. an increase in one variable would automatically lead to an increase in the other variable. In that regard, therefore, high poverty levels are likely to bring about an increase in crime rates. The correlation in this case is likely to be rather strong. This effectively means that one of the most effective ways of minimizing crime rates would be through the enhancement of income levels. At the policy level, the government ought to implement the appropriate monetary and fiscal policies so as to stimulate the economic growth of a country. Ensuring that there is a conducive environment for businesses to flourish would be a good place to start. This is more so the case given that when businesses flourish, more people are employed and hence income levels increase, effectively reducing poverty. In the long-term, this would have the effect of bringing down crime rates.

It is important to note that in the past, various studies have been undertaken in an attempt to determine whether there is any correlation between poverty and crime rates. In one such study, it was found that when there is growth in the economy, the rates of violent crime tend to decrease (Pajnzybler, Lederman, and Loayza, 2002). In the words of the authors, “since violent crime is jointly determined by the pattern of income distribution and by the rate of change of national income, we can conclude that faster poverty reduction leads to a decline in national crime rates” (Pajnzybler, Lederman, and Loayza, 2002). In yet another similar piece, McKeown (1949) points out that “criminologists have generally concluded that poverty and slum conditions are positively associated with criminality.” The latter article clearly indicates that my two variables, i.e. poverty and crime, have had positive correlation for a long period of time.

References

Jackson, S. (2007). Research Methods: A Modular Approach. Mason, OH: Cengage Learning.

McKeown, J.E. (1949). Poverty, Race and Crime. Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, 39 (4), 480-484.

Pajnzybler, p., Lederman, D. & Loayza, N. (2002). Inequality and Violent Crime. Journal of Law and Economics, 28(6), 47-59.