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I May Be an Immigrant, but I Am Not a Criminal: Examining the Association Between the Presence of Immigrants and Crime Rates in Europe

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  • Francis D. Boateng

    (The University of Mississippi)

  • Daniel K. Pryce

    (Old Dominion University)

  • Joselyne L. Chenane

    (University of Massachusetts)

Abstract

Immigration is a contentious topic that continues to elicit debates among scholars, practitioners, and the general public. Research on the relationship between immigration and crime has been at the center stage of social science inquiry for many years; however, the evidence is mixed. The aim of the present study is to supplement prior efforts to better understand the immigration–crime nexus. By analyzing aggregate-level data obtained from 21 European countries, we assessed the effects of three types of variables—percent of immigrants, immigrants with no citizenship, and refugees—on three different types of violent crimes. Overall, the results indicated a null relationship between immigration and crime, suggesting that immigration is unrelated to all the three types of crimes assessed. Based on these results, it is recommended that immigration-related policies will be based on fact and evidence, and not on sentiments and perceptions.

Suggested Citation

  • Francis D. Boateng & Daniel K. Pryce & Joselyne L. Chenane, 2021. "I May Be an Immigrant, but I Am Not a Criminal: Examining the Association Between the Presence of Immigrants and Crime Rates in Europe," Journal of International Migration and Integration, Springer, vol. 22(3), pages 1105-1124, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:joimai:v:22:y:2021:i:3:d:10.1007_s12134-020-00790-1
    DOI: 10.1007/s12134-020-00790-1
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Ramiro Martinez & Jacob I. Stowell & Jeffrey M. Cancino, 2008. "A Tale of Two Border Cities: Community Context, Ethnicity, and Homicide," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 89(1), pages 1-16, March.
    2. Luca Nunziata, 2015. "Immigration and crime: evidence from victimization data," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 28(3), pages 697-736, July.
    3. Kristin F. Butcher & Anne Morrison Piehl, 1998. "Cross-city evidence on the relationship between immigration and crime," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 17(3), pages 457-493.
    4. Jörg L. Spenkuch, 2014. "Understanding the Impact of Immigration on Crime," American Law and Economics Review, American Law and Economics Association, vol. 16(1), pages 177-219.
    5. Daniel K. Pryce, 2018. "U.S. Citizens’ Current Attitudes Toward Immigrants and Immigration: A Study From the General Social Survey," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 99(4), pages 1467-1483, December.
    6. Tim Wadsworth, 2010. "Is Immigration Responsible for the Crime Drop? An Assessment of the Influence of Immigration on Changes in Violent Crime Between 1990 and 2000," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 91(2), pages 531-553, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Danielly Sorato & Martin Lundsteen & Carme Colominas Ventura & Diana Zavala-Rojas, 2024. "Using word embeddings for immigrant and refugee stereotype quantification in a diachronic and multilingual setting," Journal of Computational Social Science, Springer, vol. 7(1), pages 469-521, April.
    2. Michael Kwame Dzordzormenyoh & Deion Perkins, 2022. "Immigration in the United States: Exploring the Factors that Predict Public Support for Police Stops Targeted at Illegal Immigrants & Immigrants with Criminal Background," Journal of International Migration and Integration, Springer, vol. 23(3), pages 1545-1566, September.
    3. Michael K. Dzordzormenyoh & Francis D. Boateng, 2023. "Immigration Politics and Policymaking in the USA (2017–2021): Examining the Effect of Geopolitics on Public Attitude Towards Immigration Policies," Journal of International Migration and Integration, Springer, vol. 24(3), pages 1281-1303, September.

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