The hypothesis of this study is that increased social stress, indexed by rising unemployment levels and crime rates, will lead to a greater popularity of crime series on television. It is tested by correlating national trends over time for the viewing of crime series, unemployment rates and crime rates in the Federal Republic of Germany and the United States. Some support for the hypothesis is found in both countries, although not when individual-level experience of unemployment and crime series viewing is examined in American survey data. Suggestions for further research are presented.
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