Template-Type: ReDIF-Paper 1.0


Author-Name: Stefania Basiglio
Author-X-Name-First: Stefania
Author-X-Name-Last: Basiglio
Author-Name: Alessandra Foresta
Author-X-Name-First: Alessandra
Author-X-Name-Last: Foresta

Author-Name: Gilberto Turati
Author-X-Name-First: Gilberto
Author-X-Name-Last: Turati
Author-Email: gilberto.turati@unicatt.it
Author-Workplace-Name: Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore
Author-Workplace-Name: Dipartimento di Economia e Finanza, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore




Title: Impatience and crime. Evidence from the NLSY97


Abstract: We empirically test the relationship between crime and impatience at the individual level
exploiting data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 (NLSY97). Besides
providing information on both violent and property crimes, NLSY97 allows to observe dierent
behaviors sharing impatience as a common latent factor. We use factor analysis to extract this
common factor as a measure for impatience. Estimates from a Logit model suggest a positive
association between impatience and crime. This relationship differs across genders: impatience
matters for both violent and property crimes for women, while it affects only violent crimes
for men. The result is robust to dierent specications of the factor analysis and to controls
for risk preferences. Our results bring support to policies aimed at inuencing individual time
preferences as an indirect way to combat crime. 
Length: 29
Creation-Date: 2021-09
File-URL: http://dipartimenti.unicatt.it/economia-finanza-def111.pdf
File-Format: Application/pdf
File-Function: First version, 2021
Number: def111
Classification-JEL: D99, K42, Z13. 
Keywords: Time preferences, Impatience, Property crime, Violent crime, NLSY97, factor analysis.
Handle: RePEc:ctc:serie1:def111