 Economic Structure and Vulnerability to Organised Crime: Evidence from SicilyMPRA Paper from University Library of Munich, Germany Abstract: The economic analysis of organized crime suggests that some economic activities are particularly vulnerable to penetration by criminal organizations. This paper provides an analysis of the structure of the Sicilian economy and shows that, when compared to other Italian regions, it is characterized by a disproportionate presence of such activities. In particular, the economy of Sicily appears characterized by: (i) a large dimension of traditional sectors, such as the Construction sector, which also has a strong territorial specificity; (ii) a large presence of small firms; (iii) a low level of technology; (iii) a large public sector. The joint presence of these features creates fertile soil for the typical activities of organized crime, such as extortion and cartel enforcement. Hence, we propose an alternative explanation of the persistence of organized crime with respect to explanations based on cultural and social factors Keywords: Organised Crime; Economic Structure; Sicilian Mafia; Economic Development (search for similar items in EconPapers) Published in Global Crime 9.3(2008): pp. 198-220 Downloads: (external link) Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:pra:mprapa:50114 Access Statistics for this paper More papers in MPRA Paper from University Library of Munich, Germany Ludwigstraße 33, D-80539 Munich, Germany. Contact information at EDIRC. |
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