The Effect of School and Neighborhood Peers on Achievement, Misbehavior, and Adult Crime

• 成果类型: Article; Early Access
• 署名作者: Billings, Stephen B.; Hoekstra, Mark
• 署名单位: University of Colorado System; University of Colorado Boulder; Texas A&M University System; Texas A&M University College Station; National Bureau of Economic Research; IZA Institute Labor Economics
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF LABOR ECONOMICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0734-306X
• DOI: 10.1086/720323
• 发表日期: 2023
• 关键词: Random assignment; outcomes evidence; CHILDREN; attainment; mechanisms; exposure; impacts; youth; LIFE; classroom

摘要

This paper assesses the importance of school and neighborhood peers in shaping educational achievement, adolescent misbehavior, and adult crime. Using cohort variation within Charlotte-Mecklenburg County, we focus on the impact of peers whose parents have been arrested, which is strongly and independently predictive of worse outcomes. Results indicate that a 5 percentage point increase in school peers linked to parental arrest reduces educational achievement by 0.016 standard deviations and increases adult arrest rates by 5%. Additional evidence indicates that peer effects are primarily driven by interactions in schools rather than in neighborhoods.