Immigrant enclaves and crime*

Abstract

ABSTRACT We study the link between neighborhood immigrant concentration and crime in England. Over previous decades there has been a significant increase in the number of immigrant enclaves, where immigrants account for a substantial fraction of the local population. Using both recorded crime and self-reported crime victimization data, we find that crime is significantly lower in those neighborhoods with sizeable immigrant population shares. The effect is nonlinear and only becomes significant in enclaves. The crime reducing effect is substantially enhanced if the enclave is composed of immigrants from the same ethnic background. We discuss some possible mechanisms for the results we observe. © 2012, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.