The effect of socioeconomic and demographic factors on crime committing: An application on Bandırma M Type Closed Prison

Our study aims to examine the effects of socioeconomic factors on crime in the Bandırma M Type Prison. In the study conducted within the framework of the economic discipline, the socioeconomic determinants of crime were analyzed with the ANOVA test model using quantitative data from convicts and detainees in prisons between 2010-2024. In the study, the effects of four basic variable groups, such as employment status (income level), education level, marital status and age, on crime trends were evaluated with regression analyses. Due to the data structure, the gender variable was not evaluated with the test method applied to other variables and was interpreted through numerical data. The findings show that crime is strongly related to multidimensional social and demographic factors. Data on labor force status show that unemployment and low-skilled (unskilled) employment rates increase crime rates. In terms of education level, crime rates among male individuals show a significant density in primary and secondary education levels. This situation shows that crime is committed most at these levels of education, and it is clearly prominent both in lower (pre-literate) and higher (tertiary) levels. This tendency is most evident at the higher education level and causes a significant decrease in crime rates, especially among female individuals. Therefore, it is concluded that there is a decreasing tendency in crime rates with increasing education level. The marital status variable shows that the tendency to crime is higher in divorced and widowed individuals; the age variable shows that the level of crime varies according to age and gender. The crime rate in male individuals shows an increasing tendency in all age groups. This situation shows that the probability of men to be involved in crime is relatively high at every stage of their life cycle and that they do not exhibit a significant decrease in criminal behavior depending on age. In women, the increase in the tendency to crime has become more evident, especially in older age groups. As a result of the study, it was emphasized that in the fight against crime, holistic policies that are not only security-based but also include social factors such as employment, education, family structure and age were necessary. In this context, it was suggested that improvement programs for employment in prisons should be increased, educational opportunities should be expanded, family and psychosocial support services should be expanded, and age and gender-sensitive practices should be developed. In addition, it was concluded that the regular and accessible collection of prison data is a fundamental need for the development of data-based policies in the fight against crime.