Freakonomics Radio Abortion and Crime, Revisited (Update)
102 snips
Oct 28, 2024 
Steve Levitt, Professor emeritus of economics at the University of Chicago, explores the unexpected link between legalized abortion and declining crime rates with Stanford's John Donohue and Amherst's Jessica Wolpaw Reyes. They delve into their groundbreaking research, revealing how abortion legalization may correlate with reduced crime and the complexities surrounding this controversial finding. The conversation also addresses misconceptions, the influence of environmental factors like lead exposure, and the role of data in public debates about sensitive topics.
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The Unexplained Crime Drop
- Violent crime in the U.S. fell significantly (more than 30%) from 1991-2001.
- Standard explanations like policing, imprisonment, and the crack epidemic only partially account for this drop.
A Controversial Correlation
- Economist Steven Levitt noticed a surprising correlation between legalized abortion and the drop in crime.
- The sheer number of abortions (1.5 million annually at its peak) prompted him to investigate potential secondary effects.
Unwantedness and Crime
- John Donohue, a law professor at Stanford, also considered the link between legalized abortion and crime.
- Donohue's insight about the "unwantedness" factor, combined with Levitt's observations, led to a collaborative research project.
