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on Social Norms and Social Capital |
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Issue of 2025–07–21
six papers chosen by Fabio Sabatini, Università degli Studi di Roma “La Sapienza” |
| By: | Mikula, Stepan (Masaryk University); Reggiani, Tommaso G. (Cardiff University); Sabatini, Fabio (Sapienza University of Rome) |
| Abstract: | We exploit a historical experiment that occurred in Czechoslovakia after World War Two to study the drivers of social capital accumulation in an extremely unfavorable environment. Between 1945 and 1948, the Sudetenland became the scene of ethnic cleansing, with the expulsion of nearly three million German speakers and the simultaneous influx of nearly two million resettlers. Focusing on the areas where at least 90% of the population was forced to leave, we show that the municipalities hosting a church built before 1945 developed significantly higher social capital under the communist rule, which persisted after the dissolution of Czechoslovakia. The heterogeneity of effects reveals that the longer a resident pastor served in a parish, the more civic capital emerged in the municipality after the Velvet Revolution, suggesting that the social interactions facilitated by pastors were crucial in establishing the foundational layer for social capital in church-hosting communities. |
| Keywords: | social capital, forced migration, conflict, institutions, religion, transition countries |
| JEL: | D74 L31 N24 N44 N94 O15 Z12 |
| Date: | 2025–07 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17981 |
| By: | Pierluigi Conzo; Gianmarco Daniele; Andrea F.M. Martinangeli; Willem Sas |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates how institutional and social trust respond to crisis situations, and to what extent different kinds of trust interact in such a context. In an online survey experiment on 4, 400 representative respondents from Italy, participants are exposed to a real-world flooding scenario and randomly assigned to information treatments portraying institutions as effective, ineffective, or neither of the two. When institutions are framed as effective, institutional trust and donations to a grassroots environmental NGO increase, while social trust and cooperation norms remain stable. When institutions are seen as unprepared, participants do not compensate by trusting others or stressing cooperation. Instead, they increase support for the NGO as well, suggesting crisis management delegation to motivated and organised citizens. When no information is provided about institutional quality all trust indicators rise, albeit more noisily. These findings suggest delegation as a distinct response to institutional failure and point to the need to study trust in civic movements as an intermediate form between institutional and interpersonal trust. |
| Keywords: | social trust, institutional trust, external shocks, online survey experiment, climate change, cooperation, grassroot movements, delegation |
| JEL: | D91 H84 Z13 C93 D83 H11 P16 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_11987 |
| By: | Belot, Michèle (Cornell University); Hakimov, Rustamdjan (University of Lausanne) |
| Abstract: | This study examines the effects of structured social activities on workplace collegiality and performance in a large white-collar firm with 100 geographically dispersed offices. In a randomized controlled trial, half of the offices received subsidies to organize biweekly social events over a three-month period—including picnics, movie nights, and team games. We find that the intervention strengthens collegiality, enhances workplace friendships, and improves office-level performance. We do not detect an impact on individual productivity, but turnover appears to have fallen in the short-run, meaning that employees stayed longer in the job. We explore possible mechanisms and identify a sense of gratitude and reciprocity toward the company as the most likely mechanism driving the effects. |
| Keywords: | bonding, climate, workplace collegiality, field experiment |
| JEL: | M54 J32 C93 |
| Date: | 2025–07 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17987 |
| By: | Francesco Agostinelli; Matthias Doepke; Giuseppe Sorrenti; Fabrizio Zilibotti |
| Abstract: | This chapter argues that parenting choices are a central force in the joint evolution of culture and economic outcomes. We present a framework in which parents-motivated by both their children’s future success and their own normative beliefs-choose parenting styles and transmit cultural traits responding to economic incentives. Values such as work ethic, patience, and religiosity are more likely to be instilled when their anticipated returns, economic or otherwise, are high. The interaction between parenting and economic conditions gives rise to endogenous cultural and economic stratification. We extend the model to include residential sorting and social interactions, showing how neighborhood choice reinforces disparities in trust and human capital. Empirical evidence from the World Values Survey supports the model’s key predictions. We conclude by highlighting open questions at the intersection of parenting, culture, and inequality. |
| JEL: | D10 I24 O10 O4 R20 |
| Date: | 2025–06 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:33963 |
| By: | Nicola Fontana |
| Abstract: | Urbanization has transformed cities into the economic hubs of high-income countries, yet concerns about declining social capital persist. This paper investigates the impact of changes in neighbourhood composition on social capital within London. I show how neighbourhoods with higher short-term renting penetration experience a reduction in charitable organizations and increased feelings of loneliness. These results cannot be attributed uniquely to a change of composition in the long-term residents, but they also reflect changes in the behaviours of residents. Moreover, I find that higher short-term renting penetration is associated with a decrease in neighbourhood quality. |
| Keywords: | civic engagement, social capital, short-term renting |
| Date: | 2025–07–02 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp2113 |
| By: | Kothe, Rafael |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates how social network and conformity dynamics shape the stability of inflation expectations and the dissemination of economic narratives. Using an agent-based macroeconomic simulation, I integrate a heuristic switching framework with an opinion dynamics mechanism to examine the impact of targeted narrative dissemination by highly central agents on expectation dispersion. The computational experiments reveal that when influential network actors transmit the central bank's inflation narrative, both inflation rate dispersion and the dispersion of expectations are substantially reduced. Conversely, when distorting narratives spread through these key nodes, it requires very high persuasion levels to significantly amplify instability. Moreover, impulse response analyses show that stronger social influence accelerates convergence toward rational expectations following shocks, thereby mitigating both the magnitude and persistence of deviations. However, heightened persuasion can also weaken the link between expectations and underlying fundamentals, as agents increasingly align with dominant narratives rather than economic signals. Overall, these findings underscore the dual role of social networks in monetary policy communication, capable of both anchoring expectations and amplifying destabilising narratives. |
| Keywords: | Expectations, Economic Narratives, Network Effects, Behavioral Macroeconomics, Agent-Based Modeling, Monetary Policy Communication |
| JEL: | D84 D83 E52 E71 D85 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:bamber:319882 |