Source: The Atlantic
Crime rates have decreased significantly in the US since 1990, making the new millennium the time with the lowest crime rates in the nation’s history. Sociologists, economists and political scientists have come up with a number of reasons for the decline that has not yet been definitely explained.
Economists suggest that higher employment rates and greater income growth could contribute to a decline in motive to commit crimes. However, economists also question this explanation because harsh economic times in America’s history have not caused significant rises in crime.
Sociologists suggests that a decrease in alcohol consumption over the past years might contribute to lowering crime rates, since there is scientific proof of a correlation between crime and alcohol consumption – particularly in rate and assault. This explanation too is questionable since other countries have higher alcohol consumption and less crime.
Another explanation for the decline in crime is that there are fewer criminals to commit the crimes, since most of them are already in jail and prisons. After all, the US does have one of the highest incarceration rates. Environmental factors too, some experts suggest, could account for declined crime, as less people are exposed to lead which has been known to stunt developmental and behavioral growth. A study found that there was in fact a correlation between lead exposure and crime rate across countries. There is definite answer to the dramatic decline that has yet been discovered.
Read full story at: The Atlantic