Rogers, M.L. & Pridemore, W.A. (2017). How does social protection influence cross-national homicide rates in OECD nations? The Sociological Quarterly. Published Online September 12th 2017 from http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00380253.2017.1367265.

Abstract

Social protection exhibits a consistent negative association with cross-national homicide rates. However, the specific mechanism through which the two are associated remains untested in spite of competing theoretical claims that include altruism, social control, buffers from market forces, and insulation from the ills associated with poverty. We explore these possible theoretical explanations, focusing on different originating sources (e.g., public or government) of social protection. Using data from nearly all OECD nations for 2010-2014, we used OLS models to estimate these associations. The results indicate the possible mechanisms through which social protection is associated with homicide are public and both direct and indirect.