The Influence of Government Effectiveness and Corruption on the High Levels of Homicide in Latin America

Spencer P Chainey,Gonzalo Croci,Laura Juliana Rodriguez Forero

doi:10.3390/socsci10050172

Spencer P Chainey, Gonzalo Croci + Show 1 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci10050172

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Abstract

Most research that has examined the international variation in homicide levels has focused on structural variables, with the suggestion that socio-economic development operates as a cure for violence. In Latin America, development has occurred, but high homicide levels remain, suggesting the involvement of other influencing factors. We posit that government effectiveness and corruption control may contribute to explaining the variation in homicide levels, and in particular in the Latin America region. Our results show that social and economic structural variables are useful but are not conclusive in explaining the variation in homicide levels and that the relationship between homicide, government effectiveness, and corruption control was significant and highly pronounced for countries in the Latin American region. The findings highlight the importance of supporting institutions in improving their effectiveness in Latin America so that reductions in homicide (and improvements in citizen security in general) can be achieved.

Highlights

Insecurity is considered to be one of the most important issues facing the Latin America region (World Bank 2015)
We examine the high levels of homicide in the Latin American region by considering how government effectiveness and corruption control may be related to homicide levels
Government effectiveness and control of corruption were found to be significantly associated with homicide rates

Summary

Introduction

Insecurity is considered to be one of the most important issues facing the Latin America region (World Bank 2015). Crime and violence have traditionally been considered symptoms of a country’s early stages of development that could be cured with economic growth and reductions in poverty, unemployment, and inequality (Chioda 2017). Supporting this is the notion of homicide rates reducing as part of a pacification process associated with modernization (Pinker 2011). Studies that have examined the factors to explain the high levels of homicide in Latin America have focused on social inequality, poverty, unemployment, and poor levels of education. We hypothesize that if governments are ineffective in delivering public services that support an environment where citizens are made secure and the delivery of services are undermined (e.g., by corruption), this creates an environment in which criminal activity can operate without being checked, of which serious violence in the form of high levels homicides is an outcome

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