The Impact of an Arrest on the Job Stability of Young White American Men

Abstract

Traditionally, criminologists have sought to understand how unemployment can lead to crime. Recently, however, a group of criminologists have begun to consider ways in which crime itself might lead to employment problems. One idea, advanced by Hagan, is that youths involved in crime do not develop the necessary social and human capital necessary to succeed in the legal labor market. A second idea, advanced by Sampson and Laub, is that the formal sanctions of the criminal justice system lead employers to avoid individuals who might otherwise succeed in the labor market. This article tests the competing implications of these two theories by using the method of “differences in differences” on the National Youth Survey. The evidence from this article suggests that arrest can lead to minor problems in the labor market above and beyond the impact of current or past criminal activity.