Compared to prior generations, like Baby Boomers and Generation X, criminal activity has decreased substantially at the start of the Millennial generation, new research shows.
For researchers at the University of Texas at Austin, their primary objective was to establish any effect of differences in criminal activity over a span of thirty years.
The study, first publicized in the Journal of Quantitative Criminology, utilized a wealth of data surrounding nationwide apprehensions for unlawful activity.
It was determined, based on the findings, that criminal activity tanked between the beginning of the 20th century and nearing the mid-20th century. It increased, however, upon the entry of Baby Boomers and Generation X, while decreasing substantially at the start of the Millennial generation during the mid-1980s.
“The pattern was similar for all index crimes,” the study reads. “Period effects were mostly responsible for the late 1980s crack boom and the 1990s crime drop, but age and cohort effects were primarily responsible for crime rate reductions after 2000. In general, birth cohort and current period effects are about equally important in determining crime rates.”
The findings were conclusive despite the fact that most crime is committed by people aged 15-25 years of age in the present time.
The study was authored by William Spelman, a distinguished expert at the University of Texas at Austin’s Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs.
