This paper analyzes the determinants of female participation in criminal activities through the use of an economic model of crime. The model is tested empirically on 1970 state data on female arrests and the results are generally consistent with the theoretical predictions. The major findings are that the probability of arrest and the probability of conviction have significant deterrent effects on female property crime, the labor force participation rate of married women has no effect and the average number of preschool children in husband‐wife families has a negative and significant effect. The decrease in the average number of preschool children per husband‐wife family that took place between 1960 and 1970 is shown to have accounted for more than half of the increase in female property crime that occurred during that dec