Organized crime, violence and support for the state

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Campedelli, Gian Maria; Daniele, Gianmarco; Martinangeli, Andrea F. M.; Pinotti, Paolo
• 署名单位: Fondazione Bruno Kessler; University of Trento; University of Milan; Bocconi University; Universite Bourgogne Europe; Burgundy School of Business; Centre for Economic Policy Research - UK
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF PUBLIC ECONOMICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0047-2727
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2023.105029
• 发表日期: 2023
• 关键词: Organized crime; experiments; Social trust; Mafias; Italy

摘要

Citizens' support is crucial to effectively combat organized crime, a substantial threat to many countries. Contrary to prior studies identifying a negative correlation between crime and trust in the state, studying a representative sample of 5374 individuals in Italy we find that exposing the participants to journalistic images of organized crime-related violence increases trust towards institutions and state performance (measured by donations to a governmental as opposed to a non-governmental organization), perceived institutional quality, and trust in political institutions. This is remarkable considering that the participants are overly pessimistic about trends in violence: About two-thirds believe that mafia-related homicides and total homicides increased in Italy over the last two decades, and half believe that they increased by over 20%, while in reality both types of homicides declined by over 60%. These findings are relevant for governments and organizations interested in non-repressive methods to fight criminal organizations, as they underscore the potential impact of media narratives on shaping public attitudes toward crime and state authorities.