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Who wants Safer Streets? Explaining Concern for Public Safety in Brazil

Author

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  • Menno Pradhan

    (World Bank, Washington, and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam)

  • Martin Ravallion

    (World Bank, Washington)

Abstract

This discussion paper resulted in an article in the Journal of Economic Psychology (2003). Volume 24(1), pages 17-33. Public action to prevent crime is often driven by concerns about public safety. But what generatesthose concerns ? ]s it crime, or something else ? Using survey data for Brazil, we find that thedesire for greater public safety has a positive own-income effect, but a negative neighborhood-income effect; living in a poor area increases concern for public safety at given own-income. Theown-income effect is nonlinear, such that inequality attenuates the aggregate concern for greatersafety. Education raises concern, and strongly so when neighbors are poorly educated. Controllingfor these factors, we identify a significant causal effect of lack of public safety on the desire forgreater safety.

Suggested Citation

  • Menno Pradhan & Martin Ravallion, 2001. "Who wants Safer Streets? Explaining Concern for Public Safety in Brazil," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 01-093/2, Tinbergen Institute.
    • Handle: RePEc:tin:wpaper:20010093
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    Cited by:

    1. Frédéric PUECH, 2004. "Are Educated Societies Less Violent? Education, Deprivation and Crime in Minas Gerais," Working Papers 200402, CERDI.
    2. John M. Cobin, 2013. "The Effectiveness of Delhi's Fire Safety Regulation Amidst Poverty, Ignorance, Corruption and Non-Compliance," Economic Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(3), pages 361-378, October.
    3. Lea KubÃ­Ä ková & Martina RaÅ¡ticová & NaÄ a Hazuchová, 2022. "What Are Czech Seniors Afraid of? Study on Feeling of Safety Among Seniors," SAGE Open, , vol. 12(3), pages 21582440221, August.
    4. Demombynes, Gabriel & Ozler, Berk, 2005. "Crime and local inequality in South Africa," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 76(2), pages 265-292, April.
    5. Frédéric Puech, 2005. "Education, Inequality and Violent Crime in Minas Gerais," HEW 0509006, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    6. Nielsen, Ingrid & Smyth, Russell, 2008. "Who wants safer cities? Perceptions of public safety and attitudes to migrants among China's urban population," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 28(1), pages 46-55, March.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Perceived public safety; crime; inequality; Brazil;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D12 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis
    • D60 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - General
    • H41 - Public Economics - - Publicly Provided Goods - - - Public Goods

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