Does Culture Affect Economic Outcomes?

Guiso, Luigi; Sapienza, Paola; Zingales, Luigi

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Does Culture Affect Economic Outcomes?

CEPR Discussion Paper No. 5505

40 Pages Posted: 30 May 2006

See all articles by Luigi Guiso

Luigi Guiso

Einaudi Institute for Economics and Finance (EIEF); Einaudi Institute for Economics and Finance

Paola Sapienza

Northwestern University - Kellogg School of Management - Department of Finance; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER); Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)

Luigi Zingales

University of Chicago - Booth School of Business; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER); Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR); European Corporate Governance Institute (ECGI)

There are 3 versions of this paper

Date Written: February 2006

Abstract

Economists have been reluctant to rely on culture as a possible determinant of economic phenomena. The notion of culture is so broad and the channels through which it can enter the economic discourse so vague that it is difficult to design testable hypotheses. In this paper we show this does need to be the case. We introduce a narrower definition of culture that allows for a simple methodology to develop and test cultural-based explanations. We also present several applications of this methodology: from the choice to become entrepreneur to that of how much to save, to end with the political decision on income redistribution.

Keywords: Cultural, culture, economic outcomes, culture economics, culture-based

JEL Classification: A10, J10, Z10

Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

Guiso, Luigi and Guiso, Luigi and Sapienza, Paola and Zingales, Luigi, Does Culture Affect Economic Outcomes? (February 2006). CEPR Discussion Paper No. 5505, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=905320