What actually stops crime? Economist Jennifer Doleac joins us to explore the behavioral science behind safer communities, revealing why certainty of consequences, not harsher punishments, is the key to changing behavior and how evidence can lead to smarter criminal justice policy.

[0:00] Introduction and Speed Round with Jennifer Doleac

[9:15] How an economist found criminal justice

[13:56] Why DNA databases reduce crime

[16:53] Certainty vs. severity of punishment

[21:11] Redemption, incentives, and justice

[25:05] Second chances for first-time offenders

[30:50] Jobs, criminal records, and Ban the Box

[37:57] When good intentions backfire

[44:08] Rethinking prisons and parole

[50:24] Why evidence struggles to shape policy

[57:58] Desert Island Music

[1:00:30] Grooving Session - Reforming our criminal justice systems

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