Working Paper: NBER ID: w25883
Authors: Lena Edlund; Cecilia Machado
Abstract: US homicide rates fell sharply in the early 1990s, a decade that also saw the mainstreaming of cell phones – a concurrence that may be more than a coincidence, we propose. Cell phones may have undercut turf-based street dealing, thus undermining drug-dealing profits of street gangs, entities known to engage in violent crime. Studying county-level data for the years 1970-2009 we find that the expansion of cellular phone service (as proxied by antenna-structure density) lowered homicide rates in the 1990s. Furthermore, effects were concentrated in urban counties; among Black or Hispanic males; and more gang/drug-associated homicides.
Keywords: cell phones; homicide rates; drug dealing; gang violence; public safety
JEL Codes: I01; I18; R00
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| cell phones diminished the importance of turf for street gangs (L96) | reduction in gang violence (K42) |
| drug dealing (K42) | violence (D74) |
| gang involvement in violent crimes (K42) | reduction during the same period (H23) |
| antenna density (C45) | spousal homicides (J12) |
| expansion of cellular phone service (L96) | reduction in homicide rates (K00) |
| increased antenna structure density (L96) | reduction in homicide rates (K00) |
| cell phone mainstreaming (L96) | decline in gang-related homicides (K42) |
| antenna density (C45) | homicides involving gangs and drug activities (K42) |