How can we reduce murder rates? Homicide is frequent in some countries, rare in others. The countries in which the homicide rate is very high include El Salvador and Honduras. The countries in which the murder rate is very low include Japan and Norway. The homicide rate in El Salvador is 100 times worse than the homicide rate in Norway. So what explains this extraordinary difference? Susanne Karstedt is a German-born criminologist who researches homicide around the world. She offers a surprising answer.

Presenter David Edmonds
Producer Ben Cooper

This episode has been updated to correct that San Pedro Sula is in Honduras and not Guatemala

(Photo: Crime Scene. Credit: Shutterstock) Show less