The effect of homophily on co-offending outcomes

Korte inhoud:This study explores how similarity preference among offenders impacts the structure of co-offending networks and the diffusion of information, modeled through skill exchange. Co-offending provides certain advantages, but factors such as trust and usefulness of co-offenders significantly influence these criminal collaborations. Using an Agent-Based Model, we simulate interactions between offenders based on varying levels of similarity preference, allowing us to observe network characteristics such as density, transitivity, average degree, tie weight, and skill acquisition. The results show that stronger similarity preferences lead to sparser but more stable criminal networks with a higher number of repeated interactions between the same offenders. However, increased exclusivity in partner selection reduces the information diffusion within the network, limiting the number of skills acquired by offenders. Conversely, inclusive partner selection facilitates greater skill exchange but results in fewer strong ties between offenders. This study highlights the trade-offs between stability and skill diffusion in criminal networks. Networks with high homophily tend to be more stable but less skilled, while more open networks allow for greater exchange of knowledge at the cost of connection strength. These findings contribute to the understanding of how offender collaboration shapes criminal network structures and the spread of criminal opportunities.

Jaar van publicatie:2024

Toegankelijkheid:Open