Racial Beliefs, Location, and the Causes of Crime

This article provides a unified explanation for why blacks commit more crime, are located in poorer neighborhoods, and receive lower wages than whites. If everybody believes that blacks are more criminal than whites—even if there is no basis for this—then blacks are offered lower wages and, as a result, locate further away from jobs. Distant residence increases even more the black–white wage gap because of more tiredness and higher commuting costs. Blacks have thus a lower opportunity cost of committing crime and become indeed more criminal than whites. Therefore, beliefs are self‐fulfilling.