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on Cultural Economics |
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Issue of 2026–07–13
six papers chosen by Roberto Zanola, Università degli Studi del Piemonte Orientale |
| By: | Tin Cheuk Leung (Wake Forest University); Shi Qi (William & Mary); Koleman Strumpf (Wake Forest University) |
| Abstract: | This paper studies self-preferencing in subscription video streaming. We assemble a new dataset linking Netflix's U.S. catalog, Top 10 rankings, Wikipedia page views, and device-level streaming records. Conditional on external popularity and other observables, Netflix Originals are significantly more likely to appear in the Top 10 than comparable non-original titles, especially among series. Using a matched staggered difference-indifferences design around first Top 10 entry, we show that Top 10 placement causally increases subsequent viewership. The effect is weaker among devices with extensive prior Netflix viewing, consistent with personalized recommendations substituting for generic rankings. These findings provide evidence of platform gatekeeping in digital media |
| Keywords: | Self-Preferencing; Netflix; Digital Platforms; Platform Bias |
| JEL: | D22 K21 L40 L82 M21 |
| Date: | 2026–06 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:wfuewp:023017 |
| By: | Rupert Allen; Jenny Watt |
| Abstract: | Despite the involvement of the Canadian government in the video game industry, there is relatively little publicly available information about the types of firms populating this industry. This article provides new statistics on the video game industry across the Canadian provinces from 2013 to 2022, focusing on three main areas of interest. First, it examines changes in firm counts, revenue and jobs across several dimensions: ownership (Canadian- or foreign-owned), activity (design or publishing), size and geographic region. Second, it presents statistics on the percentage of women employees and the percentage of employee compensation paid to women over time. Third, it compares entry and exit rates for video game firms with entry and exit rates for all private employer firms in Canada. The article illuminates several changes to the video game industry over time, including a rapid increase in the number of small Canadian-owned firms, a shift away from video game publishing towards video game design, and an increasing proportion of women employees and employee compensation paid to women. |
| Keywords: | video games, firm dynamics, women employees |
| JEL: | J23 M21 |
| Date: | 2025–08–27 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:stc:stcp8e:202500800001e |
| By: | Giuliano, Paola |
| Abstract: | This chapter reviews the growing literature on the origin, persistence and evolution of cultural norms. I begin by examining the deep historical forces that shape the formation of cultural norms, with particular attention to the role of geography, pre-industrial societal characteristics, political institutions, and historical shocks. I then analyze the mechanisms through which cultural norms persist and evolve, emphasizing the roles of vertical, horizontal, and oblique transmission. Next, I examine the complex interaction between culture and institutions, and discuss the conditions under which cultural norms change. Several conclusions emerge. Cultural norms tend to persist over remarkably long periods, though the speed of change varies significantly across traits. Norms rooted in deep historical values are the most resistant to change, while attitudes related to pro-sociality and redistribution adapt more quickly. Understanding the origins and persistence of cultural norms has important implications for policy: policies that fail to account for local cultural context risk being ineffective or generating unintended consequences, while well-designed interventions can successfully shift cultural norms. Finally, I discuss the growing evidence on cultural mismatches — situations where norms that were adaptive in historical environments become maladaptive in new contexts — and outline directions for future research. |
| Keywords: | Cultural norms; Cultural evolution; Historical persistence |
| JEL: | Z1 P0 |
| Date: | 2026–04 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:21401 |
| By: | Manassé Drabo; Horatio M. Morgan |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the impact of cultural and industrial diversity on innovation across 152 Canadian urban areas from 2001 to 2021. By applying a knowledge spillover lens, it associates such diversity with enhanced knowledge variety and diffusion. Using inventor counts and Shannon indices as proxies for innovation and diversity, the authors show that cultural and industrial diversity fosters innovation. An increase of one standard deviation in cultural diversity raises innovation by 13.4% to 81.7%, while the same increase in industrial diversity raises it by 6.6% to 36.6%. Their interaction synergistically yields an additional 2.2% to 12.4% increase in innovation. Meanwhile, recent immigration diversity amplifies these effects, validating the knowledge mechanisms and highlighting significant theoretical and policy implications. |
| Keywords: | cultural diversity, immigration, industrial structure, innovation, knowledge spillovers |
| JEL: | J23 M21 |
| Date: | 2025–11–26 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:stc:stcp8e:20250110003e |
| By: | Campbell, James |
| Abstract: | A video game developer can monetize its content (maps, themes, modes) in two ways: upfront pricing, a single high up-front price for the game with all content included, or in-game purchases, a free or cheap base with each content piece sold separately. We model this as a choice between bundling and separately selling a content stream and ask when in-game purchases dominate. Upfront pricing wins when content tastes are dispersed and weakly correlated; in-game purchases win when tastes are strongly correlated or pieces differ in appeal, when risk-averse players face uncertain content, and when players are present-biased or impulsive. A simulation with all forces active shows that bundling is the benchmark optimum and that each friction shifts the boundary toward in-game purchases, with behavioral forces moving it most. The framework explains why premium console and PC games are still sold up front, while long-lived games, especially mobile games, rely on in-game purchases. |
| Date: | 2026–06–16 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:socarx:c7ebt_v1 |
| By: | Prof. Dr. Philipp Harms (Johannes Gutenberg University, Germany); Albi Lika (Johannes Gutenberg University, Germany) |
| Abstract: | Using two survey-based data sets that characterize the prevalence of different humor styles across a wide range of countries, we explore whether humor matters for international trade in audio-visual services. Our results suggest that, ceteris paribus, aggregate humor distance – i.e. differences in how countries’ inhabitants, on average, use humor in their daily life – negatively affects bilateral trade in movies, tv series etc. We also find that differences in detrimental humor styles – “aggressive” or “self-defeating” – are particularly harmful, while differences in “affiliative” humor seem to enhance trade in audio-visual services. |
| Keywords: | Trade in services, humor, cultural distance, gravity equation, audio-visual services |
| JEL: | F14 L82 Z10 |
| Date: | 2026–06–23 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:jgu:wpaper:2604 |