Investigation of femicide in Turkey: modeling time series of counts

Abstract

This study aims to reveal the relationship between the number of femicide in Turkey, the female unemployment rate, the male unemployment rate, and inflation. The contribution of the study to the literature is that it estimates the relationship between femicides and macroeconomic variables with a method that incorporates the count data. The dataset was analyzed by using the INGARCH model, one of the most popular approaches for count time series data. This model is particularly attractive for dealing with serial dependence and over-dispersion. The findings revealed that an increase in the female unemployment rate and a decrease in the male unemployment rate increases the number of femicide. In addition, it was observed that the number of femicide in the previous month had a negative effect on the current month’s number. Increasing the employment rate of women, and women's economic freedom generally, are essential factors in reducing femicide. To prevent femicides, policymakers should aim to increase women's employment.