Scandinavian Working Papers in Economics
Working Papers in Economics,
University of Gothenburg, Department of Economics
No 676: Does increasing compulsory education decrease or displace adolescent crime? New evidence from administrative and victimization data
Ylenia Brilli () and Marco Tonello
Additional contact information
Ylenia Brilli: Department of Economics, School of Business, Economics and Law, Göteborg University, Postal: P.O. Box 640, SE 40530 GÖTEBORG, Sweden
Marco Tonello: Bank of Italy, Economic Research Department, Territorial Economic Research Unit
Abstract: This paper estimates the contemporaneous effect of education on adolescent crime by exploiting the implementation a reform that increases the school leaving age in Italy by one year. We find that the Reform increases the enrollment rate of all ages, but decreases the offending rate of 14-year-olds only, who are the age group explicitly targeted by the Reform. The effect mainly comes from natives males, while females and immigrants are not affected. The Reform does not induce crime displacement in times of the year or of the day when the school is not in session, but it increases violent crimes at school. By using measures of enrollment and crime, as well data at the aggregate and individual level, this paper shows that compulsory education reforms have a crime reducing effect induced by incapacitation, but may also lead to an increase of crimes in school facilities plausibly due to a higher students concentration.
Keywords: adolescent crime; school enrollment; crime displacement; incapacitation
33 pages, October 18, 2016
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