The nonlinear effects of air pollution on criminal behavior: evidence from Mexico City and New York
This article proposes an inverted U-shape relationship between air pollution and criminal behavior. Exposure increases criminality by raising criminals’ taste for risk and violent behavior while also reducing it by changing the number of felons and crime opportunities in the market through exacerbat...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IOP Publishing
2023-01-01
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| Series: | Environmental Research: Health |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1088/2752-5309/ac9a65 |
| _version_ | 1797698346178052096 |
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| author | Luis Sarmiento |
| author_facet | Luis Sarmiento |
| author_sort | Luis Sarmiento |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This article proposes an inverted U-shape relationship between air pollution and criminal behavior. Exposure increases criminality by raising criminals’ taste for risk and violent behavior while also reducing it by changing the number of felons and crime opportunities in the market through exacerbated morbidity and avoidance behavior. I illustrate both mechanisms with an expected utility model of the decision to delict and a simplified search and matching frictions model between criminals and crime opportunities. Linear, quadratic, and nonparametric Poisson pseudo-maximum likelihood estimator panel models confirm this bell-shaped relationship for Mexico City and New York, suggesting that the linear association between pollution and criminality uncovered by late studies may be better estimated with nonlinear models. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T03:53:06Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-fadfc2fcb9304761b39c5f894d1ea9ae |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2752-5309 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T03:53:06Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Environmental Research: Health |
| spelling | doaj.art-fadfc2fcb9304761b39c5f894d1ea9ae2023-09-03T12:15:32ZengIOP PublishingEnvironmental Research: Health2752-53092023-01-011202100110.1088/2752-5309/ac9a65The nonlinear effects of air pollution on criminal behavior: evidence from Mexico City and New YorkLuis Sarmiento0https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8780-878XRFF-CMCC: European Institute on Economics and the Environment, Centro Euro-Mediterraneo sui Cambiamenti Climatici , Via Bergognone 34, Milano, MI 20144, Italy; German Institute of Economic Research (DIW-Berlin) , Mohrenstrasse 58, Berlin 10117, GermanyThis article proposes an inverted U-shape relationship between air pollution and criminal behavior. Exposure increases criminality by raising criminals’ taste for risk and violent behavior while also reducing it by changing the number of felons and crime opportunities in the market through exacerbated morbidity and avoidance behavior. I illustrate both mechanisms with an expected utility model of the decision to delict and a simplified search and matching frictions model between criminals and crime opportunities. Linear, quadratic, and nonparametric Poisson pseudo-maximum likelihood estimator panel models confirm this bell-shaped relationship for Mexico City and New York, suggesting that the linear association between pollution and criminality uncovered by late studies may be better estimated with nonlinear models.https://doi.org/10.1088/2752-5309/ac9a65air pollutioncriminalitysearch and matching frictionsnonlinear effectsPoisson PMLE |
| spellingShingle | Luis Sarmiento The nonlinear effects of air pollution on criminal behavior: evidence from Mexico City and New York Environmental Research: Health air pollution criminality search and matching frictions nonlinear effects Poisson PMLE |
| title | The nonlinear effects of air pollution on criminal behavior: evidence from Mexico City and New York |
| title_full | The nonlinear effects of air pollution on criminal behavior: evidence from Mexico City and New York |
| title_fullStr | The nonlinear effects of air pollution on criminal behavior: evidence from Mexico City and New York |
| title_full_unstemmed | The nonlinear effects of air pollution on criminal behavior: evidence from Mexico City and New York |
| title_short | The nonlinear effects of air pollution on criminal behavior: evidence from Mexico City and New York |
| title_sort | nonlinear effects of air pollution on criminal behavior evidence from mexico city and new york |
| topic | air pollution criminality search and matching frictions nonlinear effects Poisson PMLE |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1088/2752-5309/ac9a65 |
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