Rizal College of Taal Page |1

Department of Criminology

CHAPTER I

THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

Introduction

Crime rates of various countries reveal the correlation between

employment and crime. Individuals without jobs and accommodations are forced

to violate the law in order to survive. Thus, many people consider poverty as the

main cause of crime worldwide. However, it is hard to say whether

unemployment is responsible for the crime in our country. The situation differs

from area to area, making it impossible to draw an unambiguous conclusion.

Different types of criminal activities are carried out, and not all can be

directly linked to the lack of employment. Studies have shown that property crime

can be connected to unemployment. Yet, violent crimes such as murder and rape

are not strongly related to poverty. That is why the author tries to examine

whether unemployment leads to crime in this essay.

It is not easy to conclude this matter because there are different studies

carried out which have given contradicting results. One may indicate that

unemployment and crime are linked, whereas, another will suggest that the two

are not connected (Rafael & Winter, 2018).

Most people believe that the steady rise of unemployment leads to a

relative increase in crime. An individual lacks a source of legitimate income when

he/she is unemployed. This occurs when people are laid off at the closure of a

company or not able to be employed at all after training. Some people resolve to

criminal activities such as burglary, drug peddling, and other crimes to make an
 Rizal College of Taal Page |2
Department of Criminology

income. Unemployment is high among young people. People who have

completed training and are ready for the job market stay unemployed. Another

group of young people affected by unemployment is those who are laid off

because of lack of college education. When young people are unemployed for a

long time, they lose hope of getting employment.

Research studies show that there is a link between young people who

have been unemployed for more than one year and property crime. Most young

people get involved in selling drugs such as heroin, marijuana and other

dangerous drugs because they make quick money.

Economists and researchers believe that when the rate of unemployment

is declining the rate of criminal activities is also falling. There are usually high

rates of unemployment in areas where crimes are very high. The researchers

argue that in these areas, the number of youths who have been out of work for

more than one year is extremely high.

Another argument is that areas with high rates of poverty and child abuse

and neglect increase the rate of crime. Poverty is caused by lack of employment

which leads to children resolving to crime at an early age as a source of income.

The researchers of this study became interested in this topic because they

wanted to know the impact of unemployment on crime increase as perceived by

PNP Personnel of Agoncillo, Batangas. They also want to know how

unemployment affects the behavior of a person and to find out possible solutions

to this social problem.

 Rizal College of Taal Page |3
Department of Criminology

Setting of the Study

The setting of the study is in the municipality of Agoncillo, Batangas where

the respondents are assigned as Uniformed Police Officers.

Agoncillo is a 4th class municipality in the province of Batangas,

Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 39,101 people.

Figure 1.

Map Showing the Municipality of Agoncillo, Batangas

 Rizal College of Taal Page |4
Department of Criminology

Figure 2.

Police Station of Agoncillo, Batangas

Theoretical Framework

This study is primarily anchored in

the Motivation Hypothesis by Becker.

Motivation Hypothesis suggested that a decrease in viable economic

prospects will increase the incentive to engage in crime; so the unemployed are

more likely to engage in criminal activities; this suggests a positive relationship

between crime and unemployment. The opportunity hypothesis (also referred to

as the guardianship hypothesis) on the other hand suggested that a decrease in

economic activity will decrease the availability of criminal targets (the

unemployed are also more likely to stay at home thus decreasing their

vulnerability to crime, especially property crime), and hence reduce the incentive

to engage in crime; this suggests a negative relationship between crime and

 Rizal College of Taal Page |5
Department of Criminology

unemployment. The two effects are expected to work differently based on the

type of crime; with the motivation hypothesis being more important for property

crime and opportunity hypothesis being relevant for both property and violent

crimes (though the effect is still expected to be stronger for the property crimes).
 Rizal College of Taal Page |6
Department of Criminology

Conceptual Paradigm

INPUT PROCESS OUTPUT

Profile of the police

personnel in terms
of:  Data Gathering
1.1 age through
1.2 gender distribution of
1.3 civil status self-designed
1.4 rank Questionnaires
1.5 years in service Formulation of
 Evaluation of
the impact of recommendations to
unemployment
Impact of on crime lessen crimes
unemployment on increase as
crime increase as perceived by involving
perceived by PNP PNP Personnel
Personnel of of Agoncillo, unemployment
Agoncillo, Batangas Batangas
in terms of:
2.1 property crimes  Tabulation and
2.2 fraud Interpretation of
2.3 violence gathered data
2.4 substance
abuse
2.5 sexual abuse

Figure 3.

Conceptual Paradigm
 Rizal College of Taal Page |7
Department of Criminology

This study will be inclined to determine the impact of unemployment on

crime increase as perceived by PNP Personnel of Agoncillo, Batangas.

The input includes the demographic profile of the respondents in terms of

Age, Gender, Civil Status, Rank and Years in Service. It also includes the impact

of unemployment on crime increase as perceived by PNP Personnel of Agoncillo,

Batangas in terms of property crimes, fraud, violence, substance abuse and

sexual abuse.

Data gathering, distribution of survey questionnaires evaluation of the

answers of the respondents and tabulation and interpretation of data gathered is

included in the process.

The output contains the formulation of recommendations to lessen crimes

involving unemployment.

Statement of the Problem

This research intends to find out the impact of unemployment on

crime increase as perceived by PNP Personnel of Agoncillo, Batangas.

Specially, this study sought to answer the following.

1. What is the demographic profile of respondent in terms of?

1.1 age;

1.2 gender;

1.3 civil status;

1.4 rank;

1.5 years in service?

 Rizal College of Taal Page |8
Department of Criminology

2. What is the impact of unemployment on crime increase as perceived by PNP

Personnel of Agoncillo, Batangas in terms of:

2.1 property crimes;

2.2 fraud;

2.3 violence;

2.4 substance abuse; and

2.5 sexual abuse?

3. Is there a significant relationship between the impact of unemployment on

crime increase as perceived by PNP Personnel of Agoncillo, Batangas and the

demographic profile of the respondents?

1. Based on the study, what recommendations can be formulated to lessen

crimes involving unemployment?

Hypothesis

This study tested the following hypotheses:

There is no significant relationship between the impact of

unemployment on crime increase as perceived by PNP Personnel of Agoncillo,

Batangas and the demographic profile of the respondents.

Assumption of the Study

The research study is anchored on the assumption that the respondents

will be honest in answering the questionnaires which data to be gathered by the

researchers are valid and reliable for correlation. In addition, the research study

is believed to be timely and relevant to the respondents that will result into an

outcome providing basis of knowledge from the questions.

 Rizal College of Taal Page |9
Department of Criminology

Scope and Limitation of the Study

This study will mainly focus on the impact of unemployment on crime

increase as perceived by PNP Personnel of Agoncillo, Batangas. Thirty (30)

personnel of Agoncillo Municipal Police Station will be the respondents of the

study.

Significance of the Study

This study on the impact of unemployment on crime increase as

perceived by PNP Personnel of Agoncillo, Batangas would be beneficial to the

following:

To the PNP, as an organization, it was clear perspective that awareness

of every policeman on their duties and responsibilities may help attain the

institution’s goals and be reflected on their over-all performance, as a whole.

To the community members of Sta. Teresita for they will be given ideas

when encountering such problems related in crime increase. Their minds will be

aware.

To the Rizal College of Taal, this would be a reference for the

enhancement of their curriculum for Bachelor of Science in Criminology.

To the Criminology students, the results of this study may help them a

lot in their future roles as Law Enforcers.

To the present researchers, the result of this study will enable them to

apply what they have learned, and they can adapt such knowledge once they

become connected with the police service.

 Rizal College of Taal P a g e | 10
Department of Criminology

To the future researchers, it would contribute new knowledge and would

serve as a major breakthrough for further study in this area.

Objectives of the Study

The study tends to establish the impact of unemployment on crime

increase as perceived by PNP Personnel of Agoncillo, Batangas. It also seeks to

find possible recommendations to lessen crimes involving unemployment.

 Rizal College of Taal P a g e | 11
Department of Criminology

Definition of Terms

Anomie- is a social condition defined by an uprooting or breakdown of any moral

values, standards or guidance for individuals to follow.

Assault- is generally defined as an intentional act that puts another person in

reasonable apprehension of imminent harmful or offensive contact.

Burglary- also called breaking and entering and sometimes housebreaking, is

the act of entering a building or other area without permission.

Crime Rate- is the number of crimes that are committed during a period of time

in a particular place.

Disparity- a situation in which two or more things are not equal or similar,

especially when this is thought to be unfair.

Drug Peddling- is the selling of recreational drugs.

Impact- it is something has on a situation, process, or person is a sudden and

powerful effect that it has on them.

Neglect- means to fail to pay enough attention to someone or something or to

not do enough to properly care for someone or something.

Property Crime- is a crime to obtain money, property, or some other benefit.

This may involve force, or the threat of force, in cases like robbery or

extortion.

Poverty- is about not having enough money to meet basic needs including food,

clothing and shelter.

 Rizal College of Taal P a g e | 12
Department of Criminology

Unemployment- is a term referring to individuals who are employable and

actively seeking a job but are unable to find a job.

Violent Crimes- is when someone physically hurts or threatens to hurt someone,

and also includes crimes where a weapon is used.

 Rizal College of Taal P a g e | 13
Department of Criminology

CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES

Foreign Literature

Tarling (2022) stated that unemployment tends to propel persons into

crime to enable them to survive economically, and also that unemployment tends

to increase the anomie among the unemployed that is related to criminal

behavior. The studies reviewed were either solely concerned with establishing

the impact of unemployment on crime or considered unemployment as one

among many possible influences. The studies were mainly aggregate or

ecological, they compared unemployment rates and recorded crime rates for

different areas at the same time (cross-sectional studies) or from the same area

for different years (time-series studies).

Dahlberg & Gustavsson (2017) discuss the impact of income inequality

on crime rate, the study mention it is the total income or total earnings which

decide the level of crimes in the economy. The estimates show that an increase

in the disparity in permanent income gives a significant rise in total crimes as well

as property crimes particular.

Baron (2018) examines the role of unemployment in criminal action. The

estimates disclose that the impact of unemployment on crime is moderate as

compare to other explanatory variables. The study mentions that the shortage of
 Rizal College of Taal P a g e | 14
Department of Criminology

adequate money and restricted job opportunities instantly influence the

unemployment rate and boost crime rates in the economy.

Champan et al., (2002) examine the hypothetical dispute behind the

relationship between unemployment and crime rate. In actual, the longer a

person is jobless the higher the relative charm of crime.

Lynch (2018) identify an affirm relationship between unemployment and

crime rates specifying that unemployment links with burglary, robbery, assault

and homicide. The findings show a weak or negative association between

unemployment and crime as compare to other studies. He also examines the

relationship of unemployment and a range of classes of crime in New Zealand.

Results show that total rate of crime is not remarkably affected by the

unemployment rate.

Foreign Studies

According to Jensen (2020)

, with the advancement in technology and general socio-economic

disparities in countries, unemployment has been an issue in developing and

developed countries alike. Overall, data from various countries and empirical

research indicates that there is a positive correlation between unemployment and

crime. Most scholars agree that aggregate crime increases with aggregate

unemployment on a macro-level. However, there is a lot of ambiguity with

regards to the individual impact of unemployment and crime. Researchers

generally agree that the relationship between crime and unemployment is hard to

contextualize for that very reason.

 Rizal College of Taal P a g e | 15
Department of Criminology

The study of Hennings (2018) ooked at the demographics of crimes found

that 79% of criminals were employed. It further concluded that crime rates were

not affected by a decrease in the unemployment rate.

According to the study of White (2019), there is a strong link between job

displacement and crime. People who have been displaced are much more likely

to commit a crime. This impact is more obvious in terms of property crime, which

increased 26% with higher job displacement.

Becker (2018) assert that the major determinant of criminal activity is the

cost benefit analysis that an individual does before committing the crime. Using

this theory, scholars have hypothesized that areas of high inequality, where high

income individuals are placed next to poor individuals, (who have low return from

the market) might frustrate unsuccessful individuals who might seek out crime as

a consequence.

Malik (2022) concluded that there is a direct correlation

between unemployment and crime in a community, with a stronger relationship

on a macro level. The extent of this causal relationship remains in contention still.

Sudden job loss, job displacement, to be specific, shows a greater increase in

crime than general unemployment. More consistent results show that wage

inequality and crime have a strong positive correlation. This is supported by the

economic theory of crime, which states that greater wages raise the opportunity

cost of criminal activity while poverty, on the other hand, exacerbates income

disparities, making crime a more attractive proposition.

 Rizal College of Taal P a g e | 16
Department of Criminology

Local Literature

According to Palos (2018), people who are among the fourth

category of joblessness or those who are out of the labor force for reasons that

generally are not socially acceptable and who also are not looking for work – are

most likely to commit burglary. These individuals also are significantly more likely

to commit robbery.

Herredero (2018) stated that people who are unemployed and

seeking work are no more likely to commit robbery or burglary than individuals

with full-time jobs.

Individuals who are underemployed are significantly less likely to be involved in a

burglary than someone who is working full-time. Underemployed people,

however, are not much less likely to commit robbery.

Tagano (2017) stated that being jobless can influence age groups

differently. Someone who is between the ages of 18 and 29 and falls within the

fourth category of joblessness is more than four times more likely to commit

burglary than someone who is older than 30 and in the same category of

joblessness. The odds ratio is more than three times higher in the case of

robbery.

Local Studies

According to Ramos (2018), there are several reasons to

suspect that the available evidence understates the effect of unemployment on

crime. Given the fact that most studies of the crime-unemployment relationship

rely on time-series variation in macroeconomic conditions, the common omission

 Rizal College of Taal P a g e | 17
Department of Criminology

from time-series regressions of variables that exert pro-cyclical pressure on

crime rates may lead to downwardly-biased estimates of the partial effect of

unemployment on crime.

Botanes (2018) research shows that alcohol consumption varies pro-

cyclically and tends to have independent effects on criminal behavior.

Nosotros (2017) stated that similar patterns may exist for drug use and

gun availability. In addition, declining incomes during recessions may reduce the

consumption of consumer durables and other possible theft-worthy goods, thus

providing fewer lucrative targets for criminal activity and partially offsetting any

positive effect of unemployment on crime.

Cora (2019) suggest four categories of factors that may create linkages

between the business cycle and crime: (1) variation in legitimate employment

opportunities, (2)variation in criminal opportunities, (3) consumption of

criminogenic commodities (alcohol, drugs, guns), and (4) temporal variation in

the response of the criminal justice system.

Mabini (2018) asserted that crime is a violation of societal rules of

behavior as interpreted and expressed by a criminal legal code created by

people holding social and political power. Individuals who violate these rules are

subject to sanctions by state authority, social stigma, and loss of status.

Relevance of the Reviewed Literature and Studies to the Present Study

Foreign literatures explained how unemployment leads to different crimes.

Foreign studies have identified that half of the percentage of crime

commission is due to unemployment and poverty.

 Rizal College of Taal P a g e | 18
Department of Criminology

Local literature explains the factors that contributes to the commission of

crime of unemployed individuals.

On the other hand, studies in our country show that most of the crimes

committed by unemployed individuals are robbery/burglary.

CHAPTER III

METHOD OF RESEARCH AND PROCEDURE

This chapter presents the research design in terms of research method,

methodology, population and sampling scheme instrument, respondents and

statistical treatment of data gathered.

Research Method

This study utilizes the descriptive method of research. This method was

deemed appropriate to be used since such method describes the nature of the

phenomenon under investigation after a survey of current trends, practices and

conditions that relate to that phenomenon. In this study, the impact of

unemployment on crime increase as perceived by PNP Personnel of Agoncillo,

Batangas were determined through a survey questionnaire.

Population and Sampling Scheme

The information was gathered from the police station in Agoncillo,

Batangas. From the total population of the PNP Personnel of Agoncillo MPS, the

researchers used the Random Sampling Techniques that will represent the entire

population.

Demographic Profile of the Respondents

 Rizal College of Taal P a g e | 19
Department of Criminology

The respondents of the study include Agoncillo PNP Personnel. All in all,

there are 30 police personnel of Agoncillo Police Station. They were profiled

according to Age, Gender, Civil Status, Rank and Years in Service.

Research Instruments

The research utilized the survey questionnaires

as the main tool for gathering the data needed for the research. It consists of

three parts.

Part I of the instrument was designed to draw information on the profile of

the respondents in terms of: Age, Gender, Civil Status, Rank and Years in

Service. Part II of this instrument are the perception of the PNP Personnel of

Agoncillo on the impact of unemployment on crime increase at Agoncillo,

Batangas.

Validation of Instruments

Upon deciding on the topic, the researchers prepared

the draft of the questionnaires based on the statement of the problems. It was

presented to the

adviser and faculty members who are experts and they corrected, commented

and suggested for the improvement of the questionnaires.

After integrating the comments, the questionnaires were reviewed

in accordance with suggestions and recommendations that had been given. It

was returned to the adviser and faculty members and experts for final
 Rizal College of Taal P a g e | 20
Department of Criminology

justification. Upon receipt of the validated questionnaires, the researchers

administered them to the respondents to answer the questionnaires. The

statistician evaluated the reliability of the result of the survey questionnaires that

have been made by the researchers.

Data Gathering Procedure

Upon the approval of the thesis proposal, the researchers asked

permission from the Chief of Police of Agoncillo PNP to conduct the study

through a formal letter or request. The researchers explained to the respondents

the purpose of the survey and assured them the confidentiality of their

responses. The researchers distributed the questionnaire to the target

respondents. After the retrieval of the questionnaires, the data were tallied and

tabulated, analyzed and interpreted using statistical tools.

Data Analysis/Statistical Treatment of Data

To give clearer meaning to the data gathered and appreciate their

significance in relation to the problem under study, the answer given in each item

was presented in the tables. The tallied responses were then transformed into

percentage using the following formula:

Percentage. To find out the value of the part from its whole as shown in

the profile of respondents.

X
P= x 100
N

Where:

P = Percentage
 Rizal College of Taal P a g e | 21
Department of Criminology

X = Frequency

N = Total number of Respondents

100 = Constant Multiplier