Summary in English

From one election to another, crime remains one of the biggest social and political issues, and it is a favourite subject of campaign promises by politicians. Crime imposes large costs onto society which are not taken into account by official measures of well-being and happiness of the nations. In addition, crime responds to economic conditions and incentives, which is well accepted among economists ever since the seminal papers by Garry Becker (Becker, 1968) and Isaac Ehrlich (Ehrlich, 1973). According to the standard economic model of crime, an individual's criminal activity depends on total income from legal activities, the preferences of the individual, and exogenous factors that affect the probability of arrest and the sanctions imposed. Despite the substantial work in the area, the public seems largely unaware of the economics view of crime and its implications. From an economic perspective, crime is easily described in a supply-and-demand framework in which criminals supply crime, the public demands protection from crime, and the government provides public protection (Becsi, 1999). The supply of crime is seen as a choice between legitimate activities and work on the one hand and criminal activities on the other. The choice depends on the net benefit to crime, which is the benefit of the criminal activity above all other costs associated with the crime. Eide (2000) gives a thorough overview of benefits and costs of crime. Gaines obtained from criminal activity depend on the type of crime and the individual criminal, and can be monetary or psychic (thrill of danger, peer approval, sense of accomplishment or satisfaction of wants in case of rape). Costs of crime include direct and indirect (opportunity) costs. Direct costs of crime are material costs (equipment, guns, vehicles), psychic costs (guilt, anxiety, fear, dislike or risk), and expected punishment costs (fines, incarceration, and other sanctions, as well as pecuniary costs arising from lawsuits). Opportunity costs of crime consist of net benefit (benefit minus cost) of the legal activity forgone while planning, performing, and concealing the criminal act. For example, education and welfare might be thought to increase the opportunity cost of committing crime by increasing legitimate earnings. The supply of crime is positively related to the net benefit to criminal activities, meaning that criminals will increase their activities when the net benefit rises. Examples of conditions that might cause a rightward shift of the supply curve include demographics (a higher proportion of youth), fewer …