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Crime Reporting: Profiling and Neighbourhood Observation

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  • Siddhartha Bandyopadhyay
  • Kalyan Chatterjee

Abstract

We consider the effect of giving incentives to ordinary citizens to report potential criminal activity. Additionally we look at the effect of "profiling" certain groups. In the first model, we focus on two kinds of profiling. If profiling means that police single out the profiled group for more investigation, then crime in the profiled group decreases. If profiling manifests itself through biased reporting by citizens, crime in the profiled group actually increases. In the second model, we consider a neighbourhood structure where individuals get information on possible criminal activity by neighbours on one side and decide whether to report or not based on the signal. When costs of reporting are low relative to the cost of being investigated, costs of investigation are increasing in the number of reports and there is at least one biased individual, we show there is "contagion equilibrium" where everyone reports his or her neighbour.

Suggested Citation

  • Siddhartha Bandyopadhyay & Kalyan Chatterjee, 2008. "Crime Reporting: Profiling and Neighbourhood Observation," Discussion Papers 08-07, Department of Economics, University of Birmingham.
    • Handle: RePEc:bir:birmec:08-07
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    1. Bandyopadhyay Siddhartha & Chatterjee Kalyan, 2010. "Crime Reporting: Profiling and Neighbourhood Observation," The B.E. Journal of Theoretical Economics, De Gruyter, vol. 10(1), pages 1-24, March.
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    Cited by:

    1. Bandyopadhyay Siddhartha & Chatterjee Kalyan, 2010. "Crime Reporting: Profiling and Neighbourhood Observation," The B.E. Journal of Theoretical Economics, De Gruyter, vol. 10(1), pages 1-24, March.
    2. Sussman, Nathan & Slivinski, Al, 2019. "Tax administration and compliance: evidence from medieval Paris," CEPR Discussion Papers 13512, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    3. Leslie M. Marx & Claudio Mezzetti & Robert C. Marshall, 2015. "Antitrust Leniency with Multiproduct Colluders," American Economic Journal: Microeconomics, American Economic Association, vol. 7(3), pages 205-240, August.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Neighbourhood; crime reporting and profiling;

    JEL classification:

    • C72 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Game Theory and Bargaining Theory - - - Noncooperative Games
    • D82 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Asymmetric and Private Information; Mechanism Design

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