Social Structure and Swedish Crime Rates A Time‐Series Analysis, 1950‐1979

The present article tests Cohenetal 's recent opportunity theory of crime with time series data from Sweden. Swedish welfare capitalism is viewed, from an economic perspective on crime, as possibly counteracting propensities toward crime generated from increased opportunity based, in turn, on the increased production of goods. Control variables are introduced from major alternative theories, including the econcmic, deterrence, and social bonds perspectives. The results of Cochrane‐Orcutt timeseries analyses indicate that the greater the availability of goods, the greater the rate of traditional property crime. Support is also found for an economic theory based on unemployment rates and a social bonds theory based on age. The availability of goods measure from an opportunity theory of crime, however, was the variable most closely associated with the variance in crime. The four‐fold increase in crime in Sweden was larger than that in the United States.