Venturing into Freakonomics

The recent best seller titled Freakonomics by Steven Levitt, winner of 2003 Clark Medal awarded to the best American economist below forty years, has sparked the interest of economists in providing surprising explanations of the phenomena observed in everyday life.  This column is about a similar surprising explanation of a relatively recent experience.


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Abstract:

The recent best seller titled Freakonomics by Steven Levitt, winner of 2003 Clark Medal awarded to the best American economist below forty years, has sparked the interest of economists in providing surprising explanations of the phenomena observed in everyday life.

For example, crime rates in the major US cities fell significantly during the 1990s. Most past analysts had attributed this decline to increased incomes, better employment opportunities, ageing population and improved enforcement.