Modernization, Female Social Roles, and Female Crime: A Cross-National Investigation

Abstract

This paper examines the relationship between modernization and female crime rates and tests a model which incorporates female participation in various social roles as an intervening variable. Modernization is predicted to have positive, direct effects on female property crime, as well as positive, indirect effects through female role participation. Data from approximately forty countries were analyzed using correlational and regression techniques. The results offer little support for the general model. GNP/cap exhibits positive, direct effects on female theft and fraud but only minor indirect effects. The net effects of the several female role-participation variables are generally small. Differences by type of female crime are examined and several possible explanations for the results are explored.