Breaking bad: How health shocks prompt crime

Kim Peijnenburg, Steffen Andersen, Gianpaolo Parise, Elin Colmsjö

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleScientificpeer-review

Abstract

Exploiting plausibly exogenous variations in the timing of cancer diagnoses, we establish that health shocks elicit a large and persistent increase in the probability of committing a crime. This effect materializes in a substantial rise in both first crimes and re-offenses. We uncover evidence for two mechanisms. First, an economic motive leads individuals to compensate the loss of legal revenues with illegal earnings. Second, cancer patients face lower expected cost of punishment through a lower survival probability. Welfare programs that alleviate the economic repercussions of health shocks are effective at mitigating the ensuing negative externality on society.
Original languageEnglish
JournalAmerican Economic Journal-Applied Economics
DOIs
Publication statusAccepted/In press - Jan 2025

Keywords

  • economics of crime
  • health shocks
  • human capital
  • event study

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Breaking bad: How health shocks prompt crime'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this