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on Social Norms and Social Capital |
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Issue of 2024–12–02
nine papers chosen by Fabio Sabatini, Università degli Studi di Roma “La Sapienza” |
| By: | Antonio Cabrales; Manu García; David Ramos Muñoz; Angel Sánchez |
| Abstract: | We study the evolution of interest in climate change among different actors within the population and how the interest of these actors affects one another. First, we document the evolution of interest for each actor individually, and then we provide a model of cross-influences between them. We estimate this model using a Vector Autoregression (VAR). We measure interest among the general public, the European Parliament, central banks, general interest science journals, and economics journals by creating a Climate Change Index (CCI) based on mentions of climate change in these domains. Except for general interest science journals, the index for all other domains has started showing significant values only recently, and it tends to fluctuate considerably. In terms of influence, the European Parliament and the media affect one another, but the trend in science remains relatively independent of the others. |
| Keywords: | climate change; social norms; text analysis; social networks |
| JEL: | Q54 Q58 D85 A13 |
| Date: | 2024–11–08 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:fedlwp:99043 |
| By: | Jessica Di Cocco; Eugenio Levi; Rama Dasi Mariani; Steven Stillman |
| Abstract: | Existing research has identified several economic and cultural determinants of populist voting. We focus on a related explanation: whether populist leaders are able to capitalize on a sense of distrust between individuals. There is currently limited causal evidence on the relationship between interpersonal trust and support for populist parties, and the underlying mechanisms driving this relationship are not well understood. Using three distinct causal identification strategies, each grounded in different assumptions, we find consistent evidence that a deficit in trust significantly bolsters support for populist political parties throughout Europe. Notably, this influence extends beyond ideological boundaries, encompassing both far-right and far-left populist parties. |
| Keywords: | populism, trust, immigration |
| JEL: | D72 P00 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_11394 |
| By: | Burgstaller, Lilith; Pfeil, Katharina |
| Abstract: | Does whistleblowing deter rule violations when such violations are believed to be common? We examine this question in an online experiment about collaborative tax evasion. We vary whether subjects can blow the whistle on their partner in crime and introduce a high-evasion environment by framing the social norm such that evasion is expected to be common. Our findings show that giving partners in crime the option to blow the whistle on their partner does not significantly deter collaborative tax evasion. Collaborative tax evasion significantly increases in a high-evasion environment compared to an unspecified norm environment, even when whistleblowing is possible. This finding underlines that the norm environment is crucial for evasion and corroborates that whistleblowing is ineffective when both partners benefit from collaborative evasion. We offer several explanations for these findings. |
| Keywords: | Collaborative Tax Evasion, Social Norm, Peer Reporting, Whistleblowing, Online Experiment |
| JEL: | H26 E26 O17 D91 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:aluord:305289 |
| By: | Docquier, Frédéric (LISER); Vasilakis, Chrysovalantis (Bangor University) |
| Abstract: | We test whether the level of right-wing populism in a given country influences the size and skill composition of its immigration and emigration flows. To do so, we use an instrumental variable approach, where we instrument variations in right-wing populism using a combination of collective memory, represented by the average vote share of right-wing parties between 1900 and 1950, and trigger variables, such as economic insecurity shocks. Our results show that an increase in right-wing populism leads to a decrease in the inflow of college-educated migrants, and this relationship is twice as strong as the effect on the inflow of low-skilled migrants. To a lesser extent, we also find that right-wing populism leads to an increase in high-skilled emigration, while leaving low-skilled emigration unaffected. These effects are not necessarily associated with the election of a populist government or stricter migration policies, suggesting that both in- and out-migration decisions may be influenced by the broader political climate and prevailing voter attitudes. As a result, right-wing populism tends to lower the average educational attainment of both immigrants and left-behind voters, which helps explain the persistence of right-wing populism despite its proven negative impact on the economy. |
| Keywords: | immigration, emigration, selection, right-wing populism |
| JEL: | D72 F22 F52 |
| Date: | 2024–10 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17402 |
| By: | Naoki Akaeda |
| Abstract: | In recent decades, a great deal of international comparative research has examined whether social policy crowds out or crowds in social trust. Although previous studies have made significant advances, we still have much to learn. First, the proxies of social policy adopted by earlier publications may confound the levels and distribution of welfare provisions. Second, little research has explored whether two important distribution patterns of welfare provisions—low-income targeting and universalism—crowd out or crowd in social trust in international comparative analysis. Against this backdrop, this study focuses on the distinctive roles of three dimensions of welfare transfers, such as transfer share, low-income targeting, and universalism, in social trust. For the analysis, the present study utilizes data from the Luxembourg Income Study (LIS) Database, merged data from the World Values Survey (WVS) and the European Values Study (EVS), and the two-way fixed-effects model. Through an international comparative analysis, this study clarified that low-income targeting crowds out social trust, while universalism crowds in social trust. These results suggest that (1) low-income targeting may have a side effect on social trust and (2) universalism and social trust may partly explain the selfperpetuating process of the welfare state. |
| Date: | 2023–10 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:lis:liswps:870 |
| By: | Sandra Eickmeier; Luba Petersen |
| Abstract: | As central banks, including the European Central Bank (ECB), adopt climate-related responsibilities, gauging public support becomes essential. Drawing on a June 2023 Bundesbank household survey, we find that 69% of households report increased trust in the ECB due to its climate actions, valuing the institution's broader scope and concern. While 17% and 20% of households express concerns over risks to price stability or independence, 23% believe climate engagement reinforces the ECB's core objectives. An information intervention indicates minimal impact on household inflation expectations, suggesting a disconnect between institutional trust and inflation outlooks. An internal survey reveals that central bankers accurately gauge trust impacts but tend to overestimate effects on inflation expectations. Overall, our findings indicate broad public support for the ECB’s climate initiatives. |
| JEL: | C93 D84 E59 E7 |
| Date: | 2024–11 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:33103 |
| By: | Amirapu, Amrit (University of Kent); Asadullah, Niaz (University of Reading); Wahhaj, Zaki (King's College London) |
| Abstract: | In developing countries, one in four girls is married before turning 18, with adverse consequences for themselves and their children. In this paper, we investigate whether laws can affect attitudes and behaviour towards child marriage –in a context in which the laws are not strictly enforced. We do so by developing a simple theoretical model of marriage age choice which allows us to account for several potential mechanisms through which a change in the formal law may affect attitudes and behaviour even when the law is not enforced. We also implement a randomised video-based information intervention that aimed to accelerate knowledge transmission about a new child marriage law in Bangladesh that introduced harsher punishments for facilitating early marriage. Surveys conducted immediately after the intervention document changes in respondents' attitudes while follow-up surveys conducted several months later document an increase in early marriage among treated households if the father or family elders also received the information. The findings allow us to distinguish between several competing theoretical channels underlying the effect of legal change and highlight the risk of backlash against laws that contradict traditional norms and practices. |
| Keywords: | age of marriage, social norms, formal institutions, legal change |
| JEL: | J12 J16 K36 |
| Date: | 2024–10 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17410 |
| By: | Cavapozzi, Danilo (Università Ca’ Foscari di Venezia); Francesconi, Marco (University of Essex); Nicoletti, Cheti (University of York) |
| Abstract: | Using UK longitudinal data on dual-earner couples, this paper estimates a model of intrahousehold housework decisions, which combines a randomized experimental framework eliciting counterfactual choices with gender norms differences across ethnicities and cohorts to identify the impacts of individual preferences and gender identity norms. Equal sharing of tasks yields greater utility for both men and women, with women disliking domestic chores as much as men. Although couples would want to use housework arrangements to compensate for differentials in labor market involvement, women end up performing a substantially larger share of housework. This is not due to specialization, rather social norms play a key role. Exposure to more egalitarian gender attitudes significantly increases the probability of choosing an equal share of housework. Were attitudes evened up to the most progressive levels observed in the sample, women doing more housework than their partners would stop to be the norm already among present-day households, except for households with children. |
| Keywords: | intrahousehold allocation of chores, labor supply, vignettes, gender identity norms, gender gaps |
| JEL: | C25 C26 D13 J16 J22 |
| Date: | 2024–10 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17370 |
| By: | Clément Marinos (LEGO - Laboratoire d'Economie et de Gestion de l'Ouest - UBS - Université de Bretagne Sud - UBO - Université de Brest - IMT - Institut Mines-Télécom [Paris] - IBSHS - Institut Brestois des Sciences de l'Homme et de la Société - UBO - Université de Brest - UBL - Université Bretagne Loire - IMT Atlantique - IMT Atlantique - IMT - Institut Mines-Télécom [Paris], MARSOUIN - Môle Armoricain de Recherche sur la SOciété de l'information et des usages d'INternet - UR - Université de Rennes - UBS - Université de Bretagne Sud - ENSAI - Ecole Nationale de la Statistique et de l'Analyse de l'Information [Bruz] - UBO - Université de Brest - IMT - Institut Mines-Télécom [Paris] - UR2 - Université de Rennes 2 - UBL - Université Bretagne Loire - IMT Atlantique - IMT Atlantique - IMT - Institut Mines-Télécom [Paris]) |
| Abstract: | In this article, we aim to highlight the importance of digital platforms, particularly the social network Facebook, in online relationships among digital nomads. To achieve this, we employ social capital theory, conducting both quantitative and qualitative analyses of user groups and posts. The results reveal a strong geographical dimension in the search for social capital, as well as a relative balance between bridging and bonding capital. We also underscore a limited presence of local actors on the social network, despite the richness of interactions among nomads, preferring virtual relationships among peers. |
| Abstract: | Dans cet article, nous cherchons à mettre en évidence l'importance des plateformes numériques et plus particulièrement du réseau social Facebook dans les relations en ligne entre nomades numériques. Pour y parvenir, nous convoquons la théorie du capital social en analysant quantitativement et qualitativement les groupes et les posts des usagers. Les résultats montrent la forte dimension géographique dans la recherche de capital social ainsi qu'un relatif équilibre entre capital qui relie (bridging) et capital qui renforce (bonding). Nous mettons par ailleurs en évidence une faible présence des acteurs locaux sur le réseau social malgré la richesse des échanges entre nomades qui ont tendance à privilégier les relations virtuelles entre pairs. |
| Keywords: | digital nomads, social capital, territory, digital social networks, Facebook, online communities, nomades numériques, capital social, territoire, réseaux sociaux numériques, communautés en ligne, capital social territoire réseaux sociaux numériques Facebook communautés en ligne digital nomads social capital territory digital social networks Facebook online communities, communautés en ligne digital nomads |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:journl:hal-04738405 |