It is argued that large part of crime is economics - if people are working and have a home and family to support, then you can reduce the crime rate in society. This was also an inspirational quote from Vincent Frank that Business Recorder op-ed writers Ikramul Haq and Huzaima Bukhari used in the introduction to their latest article carried by the newspaper last Friday. It is also argued that in order to fight crime, there is always a strong need for examining the social and economic backgrounds that encourage or promote crimes. But a dedicated and committed researcher, in his search for the causes of crime, cannot accept any theory blindly. In 1968, Nobel Prize laureate Gary Becker introduced the standard economic model of crime, changing across the globe the way of thinking about criminal behaviour. Becker successfully demonstrated that it is in fact individual rationality that determines whether a person engages in criminal activities or not. In other words, Becker's rational criminal's direction to commit crimes is the outcome of a cost-benefit analysis aimed at maximizing utility. The argument that I have sought to advance through this letter to Business Recorder Editor is aimed at making it plain that not only does a rational criminal commits crime regardless of his prosperity or lack of it, good or bad training under all conditions, he also defends it. Isn't it happening in our society as well?
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