Immigration, Employment Opportunities, and Criminal Behavior

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Freedman, Matthew; Owens, Emily; Bohn, Sarah
• 署名单位: University of California System; University of California Irvine; University of California System; University of California Irvine; University of California System; University of California Irvine
• 刊物名称: AMERICAN ECONOMIC JOURNAL-ECONOMIC POLICY
• ISSN/ISSBN: 1945-7731
• DOI: 10.1257/pol.20150165
• 发表日期: 2018
• 页码: 117-151
• 关键词: UNITED-STATES; labor-market; control act; legal status; REFORM; crime; wages; Legalization; workers; DISCRIMINATION

摘要

We take advantage of provisions Of the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA), which granted legal resident status to long-time unauthorized residents but created new obstacles to employment for more recent immigrants, to explore how employment opportunities affect criminal behavior. Exploiting administrative data on the criminal justice involvement of individuals in San Antonio, Texas and using a triple-differences strategy, we find evidence of an increase in felony charges filed against residents most likely to be negatively affected by IRCA's employment regulations. Our results suggest a strong relationship between access to legal jobs and criminal behavior