Priced out of your future : how housing hardship increases adolescents’ exposure to police-initiated contacts. Evidence from the United Kingdom
Valente, Ricardo (Centre d'Estudis Demogràfics)
Corcoran, Jonathan (University of Queensland)
Vidal, Sergi (Centre d'Estudis Demogràfics)
Centre d'Estudis Demogràfics

Data:	2026
Resum:	This study examines how childhood housing tenure instability affects police con- tacts among adolescents, an underexplored yet consequential dimension of youth interactions with law enforcement. Analyzing data from 10,608 participants in the United Kingdom Millennium Cohort Study (2001–2015), we construct a novel measure of cumulative housing hardship, capturing the compounded effects of frequent residential moves and tenure instability (e. g. , growing up in cost-burdened households, experiencing downward mobility, or being priced out of homeowner- ship). Logistic regression results indicate that adolescents living in unstable non- ownership homes or who were exposed to downward tenure mobility trajectories during childhood are significantly more likely to experience police-initiated con- tact (stop and search, caution, or arrest) than their peers who either remained residentially stable or moved within homeownership. However, youth conduct alone does not fully explain these disparities. Using Karlson-Holm-Breen mediation analysis, we find that, beyond externalizing disorders, traditionally linked to an increased risk of engaging in violent and antisocial behaviors, social disconnection serves as a significant mediating pathway. These findings challenge conventional criminological perspectives that attribute police contact primarily to individual criminal propensity, instead highlighting housing hardship as a structural driver of early legal system exposure.
Ajuts:	European Commission 101043981
Nota:	Altres ajuts: Ramon y Cajal RYC2023-043331-I
Drets:	Aquest document està subjecte a una llicència d'ús Creative Commons. Es permet la reproducció total o parcial, la distribució, i la comunicació pública de l'obra, sempre que no sigui amb finalitats comercials, i sempre que es reconegui l'autoria de l'obra original. No es permet la creació d'obres derivades.
Llengua:	Anglès
Document:	Article ; recerca ; Versió publicada
Matèria:	Birth cohort studies ; Housing tenure ; Life course ; Residential mobility ; Youth-police interactions
Publicat a:	Social Problems, 2026, p. 1-22

DOI: 10.1093/socpro/spag019

22 p, 1.1 MB

El registre apareix a les col·leccions:
Documents de recerca > Documents dels grups de recerca de la UAB > Centres i grups de recerca (producció científica) > Ciències socials i jurídiques > Centre d’Estudis Demogràfics (CED-CERCA)
Articles > Articles de recerca
Articles > Articles publicats