Meta Analysis of Crime and Deterrence : A Comprehensive Review of the Literature

Crime and its deterrence have always been recognized as important societal problems. More than 840 empirical studies on the effectiveness of deterrence have been published in the past decades but the question still remains controversial. This meta analysis shows that there is more evidence for the presence of a deterrent effect than for its absence. Moreover, several properties are identified which determine - to a large extent - the outcome of a study analyzing the deterrent effect of the probability and severity of punishment. Beside these findings, this study can be used as an in-depth guide for complex meta analyses in regard to the acquisition of the data, its processing, publication bias and the analysis itself. Finally, detailed information is also provided on the 700 studies included.