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Urbanisation and Crime: A Case Study of Pakistan

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  • Hafiz Hanzla Jalil

    (Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, Islamabad)

  • Muhammad Mazhar Iqbal

    (Department of Economics, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad)

Abstract

From the economic point of view, urbanisation is good as it facilitates achievement of economies of scale and thus promotes growth of industries and development in the economy. However, from the social point of view, urbanisation encourages crime as the rate of crime is higher in large cities and in urbanised areas. Several explanations of the phenomenon have been provided in the literature but none of these provide a sound analysis of the linkage between urbanisation and crime. The objective of this paper is to explore this linkage. We use the Johansen Cointegration method, and the period of analysis is 1964–2008. Besides urbanisation, four other socio-economic determinants, which may influence crime, are also analysed. These are unemployment, inflation, income inequality, and education. The results show a long-run positive and unique relationship between urbanisation and crime in Pakistan. Since migration to urban areas is mostly caused by a search for jobs, the policy-makers should plan for more industrial centres in the rural areas. These industrial centres will provide employment and, consequently, urbanisation and crime would be better controlled

Suggested Citation

  • Hafiz Hanzla Jalil & Muhammad Mazhar Iqbal, 2010. "Urbanisation and Crime: A Case Study of Pakistan," The Pakistan Development Review, Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, vol. 49(4), pages 741-755.
    • Handle: RePEc:pid:journl:v:49:y:2010:i:4:p:741-755
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Muhammad Awais Anwa & Samia Nasreen & Anam Shahzadi, 2015. "Social and Demographic Determinants of Crime in Pakistan: A Panel Data Analysis of Province Punjab," International Journal of Economics and Empirical Research (IJEER), The Economics and Social Development Organization (TESDO), vol. 3(9), pages 440-447, September.
    2. Awais Anwar & Noman Arshed & Sofia Anwar, 2017. "Socio-economic Determinants of Crime: An Empirical Study of Pakistan," International Journal of Economics and Financial Issues, Econjournals, vol. 7(1), pages 312-322.
    3. Goh, Lim Thye & Law, Siong Hook, 2023. "The crime rate of five Latin American countries: Does income inequality matter?," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 745-763.
    4. Bortoletto, Gianluca, 2022. "The link between migratory background and crime perceptions. A repeated cross-sectional analysis with household data," MPRA Paper 112488, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    5. Naveed Zafar Janjua & Bushra Mahmood & Junaid A Bhatti & M Imran Khan, 2015. "Association of Household and Community Socioeconomic Position and Urbanicity with Underweight and Overweight among Women in Pakistan," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 10(4), pages 1-15, April.
    6. Amjad Ali & Chan Bibi, 2020. "Public Policies, Socio-Economic Environment And Crimes In Pakistan: A Time Series Analysis," Bulletin of Business and Economics (BBE), Research Foundation for Humanity (RFH), vol. 9(1), pages 1-11, March.
    7. Ayesha Haider & Amjad Ali, 2015. "Socio-Economic Determinants of Crimes: A Cross-Sectional Study of Punjab Districts," International Journal of Economics and Empirical Research (IJEER), The Economics and Social Development Organization (TESDO), vol. 3(11), pages 550-560, November.
    8. Saqib Amin & Nawaz Ahmad, 2018. "Ethnic Diversity, Social Exclusion and Economic Determinants of Crimes: A Case Study of Pakistan," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 140(1), pages 267-286, November.
    9. Yong Wang & Wei Chen & Xuteng Lu & Hang Yan, 2023. "A Solution-Extracted System for Facilitating the Governance of Urban Problems: A Case Study of Wuhan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(18), pages 1-19, September.
    10. Mohamad Kassem & Amjad Ali & Marc Audi, 2019. "Unemployment Rate, Population Density and Crime Rate in Punjab (Pakistan): An Empirical Analysis," Bulletin of Business and Economics (BBE), Research Foundation for Humanity (RFH), vol. 8(2), pages 92-104, June.
    11. Maham Furqan & Haider Mahmood, 2020. "Does education reduce homicide? A panel data analysis of Asian region," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 54(4), pages 1197-1209, August.

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