Unemployment and Crime Among the Youth in Seeta Central Division Mukono District

CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 1.0 Introduction This research will explore unemployment as the independent variable (IV) and crime among the youth as the dependent variable (DV) in Seeta Central division, Mukono district, Uganda. The f~ocus of the study is crime among the youth which has remained high despite the numerous legal cfforts by urban councils responsible for youth crimes that has resulted into community problems among others in Seeta Central division, Mukono district. This chapter will cover the background to the study, the statement of the problem, the general objective of the study, the specific Dbjectives of the study, the research questions, the hypothesis, significance of the study, justification of the study, scope of the study, and operational definitions. 1.1 Background to the study The age pattern of crime is close to universal. In virtually all countries, criminal activity rise with age, peak in the late teens, then fall (e.g. Hirschi and Gottfredson 1983). For example, while the conviction rate among Swedish men aged 19 to 24 in the year 2005 amounted to 4.2 percent the corresponding figure for men aged 29 to 34 was nearly half as large. A popular explanation for the age distribution of crime is that youths are more exposed to unemployment (e.g. Freeman 1996; Grogger 1998). Economists have argued that the income loss generated by unemployment lowers the opportunity cost of engaging in crime (cf. Becker 1968; Ebrlich 1973). Others have hypothesized that joblessness triggers frustration and anger, which in turn may lead to violent behavior (e.g. Agnew 1992). It has also been suggested that unemployment provides individuals with more time and opportunities to commit crime (Felson 1998). Understanding the link between youth unemployment and crime is not only important to help explain the age distribution of crime but is also a key issue for public policy since any relationship would indicate that the social benefits of investments in labor market programs may exceed those usually claimed.