Unemployed and Aggressive?

In the discussion on the effects of rising unemployment in West Germany, fears are articulated that unemployment will be accompanied with growing criminality, especially among the young unemployed. On the basis of a secondary interpretation of older & recent research in this field, this conjecture is not generally confirmed. For purposes of explanation several forms of reaction in times of economic crises are differentiated: acting out, self-aggression, (eg, suicide), withdrawal from society, anxiety, & personal disintegration (eg, vagrancy), as they are found in literature on the social & psychological consequences of unemployment. It is therefore argued that unemployment for itself is no key factor driving people into a criminal career. On the other hand, there is much evidence that unemployment can loosen the social bonds to society. In analyzing the relation between unemployment & criminality, it seems more important to take account of the complex network of social integration. In favor of criminal strategies of self-assertion are: a defective social field (anomie) & a bad socialization record. 2 Graphs. AA.