Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Is Bigger Better? An Analysis Of Economies Of Scale And Market Power In Idaho Police Departments, Tate Jayden Fegley

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Whether the nature of policing services allows for economies of scale to be realized is an important question for police departments for reasons of both cost and efficiency. This study replicates the methodology used by Southwick (2005) to estimate police production and demand in order to determine whether there are economies of scale among police departments in Idaho. Southwick's (2005) method is unique in that it incorporates measures of market power to predict police efficiency. The present study is unique in that it involves data from a low density, low population western state. Southwick's results for New York State are …