The Transition from School to Jail: Youth Crime and High School Completion Among Black Males, Second Version

51 Pages Posted: 19 Jan 2009

See all articles by Antonio Merlo

Antonio Merlo

University of Pennsylvania - Department of Economics; Rice University

Kenneth I. Wolpin

University of Pennsylvania - Department of Economics

Date Written: January 16, 2009

Abstract

In this paper, we study the relationship among schooling, youth employment and youth crime. The framework, a multinomial discrete choice vector autoregression, provides a comprehensive analysis of the dynamic interactions among a youth's schooling, work and crime decisions and arrest and incarceration outcomes. We allow for observable initial conditions, unobserved heterogeneity, measurement error and missing data. We use data from the NLSY97 on black male youths starting from age 14. The estimates indicate important roles both for heterogeneity in initial conditions and for stochastic events that arise during one's youth in determining outcomes as young adults.

Keywords: crime, schooling, work, VAR

JEL Classification: K42, J24, J15

Suggested Citation

Merlo, Antonio M. and Wolpin, Kenneth I., The Transition from School to Jail: Youth Crime and High School Completion Among Black Males, Second Version (January 16, 2009). PIER Working Paper No. 09-002, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1329045 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1329045

Antonio M. Merlo (Contact Author)

University of Pennsylvania - Department of Economics ( email )

Ronald O. Perelman Center for Political Science
133 South 36th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6297
United States
215-898-7933 (Phone)
215-573-2057 (Fax)

HOME PAGE: http://www.ssc.upenn.edu/~merloa

Rice University ( email )

6100 South Main Street
Houston, TX 77005-1892
United States

Kenneth I. Wolpin

University of Pennsylvania - Department of Economics ( email )

Ronald O. Perelman Center for Political Science
133 South 36th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6297
United States
215-898-7708 (Phone)
215-573-2057 (Fax)

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