Illegal Earnings, Opportunity Structures and the Timing of Life Transitions

We draw from theories of choice and the life course perspective to assess if earning money from crime during adolescence is associated with the timing of entry into stable employment, cohabitation and marriage and consider the timing of two key structural factors—incarceration and bachelor’s degree completion—that may attenuate any observed relationships. We analyze a subsample of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997. Results of proportional hazard models with propensity score matching suggest that illegal earnings in adolescence is associated with hastening incarceration and delaying bachelor’s degree completion. Illegal earnings in adolescence is directly associated with cohabitation, incarceration and bachelor’s degree completion are related to the timing of stable employment and marriage. Findings are discussed.