In economics, The Broken Window Theory describes a concept regarding the implications associated with acts of disorder and misbehavior. Developed by social scientists James Q. Wilson and George Kelling in 1982, the theory is rooted in criminology but is often cited in the world of economics.
Their hypothesis starts with one abandoned house in a populated neighborhood. When people observe this abandoned house, some of them will inherently have the urge to throw a rock through the window of the house. The result of one broken window in a neighborhood is the exponential growth of misbehavior and disorder in the area.
A broken window carries an immediately observable signal to bystanders. This signal suggests disarray, abandonment and disorder. One broken window encourages people to throw a rock at another window, and then another and another. Eventually, the marginal cost of breaking one more window hits almost zero. In a neighborhood full of broken windows, boarded doors and abandoned houses, no one thinks twice about the consequences of adding to the disorder. As more windows are broken, the strength of the signal grows. Soon, instead of just broken windows, robberies, drugs, prostitution and other crimes begin to creep into an area that seems to have no rules or order.
To maintain order, all parties must acknowledge and implement due responsibility. Constant coordination is critical for control — if one wheel goes off the rails, the entire train is at risk of derailment.
Beyond criminology, Wilson and Kelling’s theory can be applied to various assets of life, especially for college students. If you skip a class once, the marginal cost of skipping again plummets. Once that class becomes a dedicated nap time, all windows are seemingly broken as disorder looms until midterm season exposes the actual cost of each nap. It’s a vicious cycle if kept untapped.
The theory has applications to the struggles of college living, too. We have all come home to a sink full of dishes or a 6-foot-tall balancing act of trash. The chaos can feel uncontrollable, but it inevitably comes down to the contributions of every part.
“Roommates, dirty dishes and trash left lying around is a perennial problem. I had the same conversation with my roommates in college. A few dishes in the sink quickly become a sink full of dishes,” Howard Bodenhorn, an economics professor at Clemson, said.
In the same way that fixing an abandoned town one window at a time is difficult, dismantling the mayhem as a college student requires commitment and a willingness to change.
“Sometimes, someone just has to provide the public good even though there is no reward for doing so. Maybe the reward comes in the afterlife,” Bodenhorn said.
Nonetheless, the Broken Window Theory brings a common conclusion — do your part.
Ethan Silipo is a junior economics major from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Ethan can be reached at [email protected].
