I am grateful to Harald Beyer, Rodrigo Cerda, Ignacio Irarrázaval, and participants in a seminar at Universidad Católica de Chile for helpful comments. I am also grateful to the Public Policy Department of the Universidad Católica de Chile for financial support and to Claudia Martínez for valuable research assistance. Finally, I would like to thank two anonymous referees for providing useful comments and suggestions that improved significantly the quality of the paper.
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CRIME PREVENTION PROGRAMS: EVIDENCE FROM CHILE
Article first published online: 23 FEB 2012
DOI: 10.1111/j.1746-1049.2011.00152.x
© 2012 The Author. The Developing Economies © 2012 Institute of Developing Economies
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How to Cite
VERGARA, R. (2012), CRIME PREVENTION PROGRAMS: EVIDENCE FROM CHILE. The Developing Economies, 50: 1–24. doi: 10.1111/j.1746-1049.2011.00152.x
Publication History
- Issue published online: 23 FEB 2012
- Article first published online: 23 FEB 2012
- First version received October 2009; final version accepted July 2011
- Abstract
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Keywords:
- Crime;
- Anti-crime programs;
- Generalized Method of Moments
- O10;
- K42;
- K14;
- J18
This paper analyzes the impact of two anti-crime programs adopted in Chile in the late 1990s. The first (the so-called Quadrant Plan) is aimed at enhancing the quality of police work and the second (the Secure County Plan), at encouraging the involvement of the community in designing specific projects aimed at reducing the crime rate. It is found that only the Quadrant Plan has been successful in terms of reducing crime rates and has caused an impact through the effect of arrests in deterring crime. The Secure County program does not appear to have had any incidence on crime rates. It is also found that crime is associated with unemployment and that there is persistence in crime rates.