| Abstract: |
Language serves two key functions. It enables communication between agents,
which allows for the establishment and operation of formal and informal
institutions. It also serves a less obvious function, a reassuring quality
more closely related to issues linked with trust, social capital, and cultural
identification. While research on the role of language as a learning process
is widespread, there is no evidence on the role of language as a signal of
cultural affinity. I pursue this latter avenue of research and show that
subtle language affinity is positively linked with change in earnings when
using English-speaking data for cities in the Golden Horseshoe area in
Southern Ontario during the period 1991 to 2001. The results are robust to
changes in specification, a broad number of empirical tests, and a diverse set
of outcome variables. |