Cultural Economics http://lists.repec.org/mailman/listinfo/nep-cul Cultural Economics 2026-09-07 Cultural Evolution https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:35656&r=&r=cul What gave rise to the mosaic of cultural expressions across the globe? Why are some societies more culturally diverse than others? This study develops a unified theory of cultural evolution, characterizing the forces that have governed this process over the course of human existence. The research advances the hypothesis that population movements and socioeconomic transformations generated a mismatch between inherited cultural traits and prevailing ecological and societal conditions, setting in motion an evolutionary process governed by adaptation-based vertical transmission, horizontal diffusion, and fitness-based evolutionary selection. The theory generates novel testable predictions concerning the origins of the global cultural mosaic and the cross-societal variation in cultural diversity. First, greater ecological distance between ancestral environments generated greater cultural distance across societies. Second, prehistoric differences in ancestral diversity contributed to divergent adaptive capacity and greater cultural distance. Third, societies descended from more diverse prehistoric populations exhibit greater cultural diversity despite convergence induced by adaptation to a common environment and societal norms. Drawing on measures of cultural distance and diversity derived from folkloric and musical traditions among ethnic groups, visual representations of common concepts, and the dispersion of norms, values, and attitudes, the empirical analysis lends credence to the predictions of the theory. Oded Galor Marc Klemp Daniel C. Wainstock 2026-08 Religion in Emerging and Developing Regions https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdl:ucsdec:qt9jt1j1t7&r=&r=cul This article examines the evolving relationship between religion and economic development in emerging and developing countries (EDCs). Building on large-scale survey data and recent scholarship, we document persistent and, in many regions, increasing levels of religiosity. First, we present global trends in religious beliefs and practices, highlighting a religious divergence between EDCs and high-income countries, as well as the continued prevalence of traditional belief systems alongside major world religions. Second, we analyze the determinants and consequences of religious behavior, showing how income volatility, financial insecurity, and cultural transitions sustain demand for religion. Third, we explore the institutional and political dimensions of religion in EDCs, emphasizing the role of religious institutions as public goods providers and as politically influential actors. This discussion offers a framework for understanding religious organizations as adaptive, competing platforms in pluralistic religious marketplaces. Overall, our findings suggest that religious adaptation, rather than decline, is central to understanding the future of religion and its economic implications in the developing world. Lowes, Sara Marx, Benjamin Montero, Eduardo 38 Economics (for-2020), 3801 Applied Economics (for-2020), 3803 Economic Theory (for-2020), Generic health relevance (hrcs-hc), 10 Reduced Inequalities (sdg), 3801 Applied economics (for-2020), 3803 Economic theory (for-2020) 2026-08-07 Collective creativity beyond time constraints: the role of lived temporal experience in online creative work https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:journl:hal-05719918&r=&r=cul This study investigates how temporal structures shape creative processes in teams by distinguishing between structural time, interactional dynamics, and subjective temporal experience. Drawing on rhythmanalysis and team temporal dynamics, we examine how imposed temporal constraints and perceived time influence both individual and collective creativity. Using a between-subjects experimental design (N = 171), participants were assigned to four conditions manipulating time pressure (constrained vs. relaxed) and guidance (guided vs. unguided). Measures included individual and collective flow, temporal climate, cognitive load, perceived creativity, and expert-rated creativity. Results indicate that structural conditions did not significantly affect collective flow or creative outcomes. However, perceived time significantly influenced individual flow, temporal climate, and perceived creativity. Correlation analyses further revealed that collective flow is the strongest predictor of perceived creativity, while objective creativity measures were not associated with subjective experience. These findings highlight a dissociation between structural and lived temporalities and suggest that creativity in teams is driven less by imposed time constraints than by interactional and experiential rhythms. The study contributes to a process-oriented understanding of creativity by integrating temporal coordination and rhythmanalysis perspectives. Edith Prat Temporal dynamics, Flow experience, Rhythmanalysis, Team coordination, Online collaboration, Collective creativity 2026-06-11 Culture and constitutional compliance https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2608.23369&r=&r=cul Constitutions as the formal foundation of a country's legal and political system have important economic and political effects. Yet, we still know little about why constitutions set effective constraints on politicians in some societies, while being largely disregarded in others. Here, we ask if national culture matters for constitutional compliance. We study a cross-section of 115 countries, making use of novel indicators of constitutional compliance. We find that societies with a more individualistic population exhibit higher levels of compliance. These results are robust and extend to instrumental variables estimations. They imply a novel transmission channel from cultural traits to long-term economic development: individualistic national culture increases the credibility of constitutional self-commitments. Our analysis also supports the more general idea that the effects of formal institutions depend on the informal institutional environment in which they are embedded. Regarding religion, our results are consistent with past research that attributes the lack of development in the modern Muslim world to deficient institutional quality. Jerg Gutmann Anna Lewczuk-Czerwi\'nska Jacek Lewkowicz Stefan Voigt 2026-08 News Consumption in the Digital Age https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_12945&r=&r=cul Digital technologies have transformed the news landscape, shifting consumption from print media toward online providers. This has allowed news outlets to collect richer data on individual readers, and to use those data both to tailor the news a reader sees — which stories appear and how they are framed — and to sell more precisely targeted advertising. Online news outlets also increasingly recruit readers from social media, amplifying incentives to capture reader attention through sensationalized stories and other techniques to increase engagement. Generative AI is likely to accelerate this trend by lowering the cost of personalizing news. Whether cheaper production and finer personalization raise or lower consumer welfare depends on how closely the objectives firms maximize are aligned with the underlying preferences of consumers. This review studies how the shift toward online news consumption affects both the supply and the demand for news and draws potential implications for consumer welfare. Francesco Capozza Ingar Haaland Christopher Roth Johannes Wohlfart Ingar K. Haaland news consumption, engagement, algorithms, generative AI, social media, attention economy 2026