Divergent Drivers of Crime in Asia: A Comparative Panel Analysis of Institutional and Socioeconomic Factors

Abstract The article examines the long-term crime gap across Asia, a region experiencing rapid economic growth and fragile development institutions. The article distinguishes between time-invariant structural forces that call for cross-country variation and time-varying dynamic forces that change at the country level. Written with panel data from 38 Asian nations from 2012 and 2023, the article applies four econometric specifications—Pooled OLS, Fixed Effects, Multilevel Tobit, and System-GMM—to quantify the impacts of corruption, political stability, income inequality, and urban transformation on perceptions-based Crime Index. The evaluation concludes that structural causes, led by corruption, are principal reasons for cross-national crime gaps, especially in poor- and middle-income markets. However, income inequality and political instability have significant impacts on the time-series variation of crime in nations, primarily high-income nations. The findings suggest that crime-control efforts may not be applicable in all contexts. The study confirms the use of a dual-track methodology: institutional construction and anti-corruption in underdeveloped nations, and the reduction of socioeconomic inequality in high-income nations—the provision of a policy-determining framework aiding evidence-informed policymaking in Asia.