Natural disasters expose societies to an external environment that requires forward-looking adaptation. This paper argues that societies with greater historical exposure to natural disasters are more likely to develop long-term-oriented norms that emphasize preparation, saving, and future well-being. We test this hypothesis by linking historical exposure to earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions from 4360 BC to 1980 CE to contemporary long-term orientation. Disaster exposure is proxied by a distance-based measure that aggregates proximity to major catastrophic events over long horizons. Long-term orientation is examined using folklore traditions at the ethnic level and survey-based evidence at the individual and country levels. Across all levels of analysis, we find that greater cumulative disaster exposure is associated with significantly stronger long-term orientation. Evidence from folklore and second-generation migrants suggests that these effects operate through cultural adaptation and intergenerational transmission.

We study whether legal traditions matter for the propensity of countries to ratify the Paris Agreement (PA), and thus their level of cooperation on addressing climate change. On the one hand, the economics literature argues that civil law countries are generally more prone to intervene to address negative externalities. On the other hand, the international law literature argues that the legal traditions' compatibility with international agreements depends on their designs. While civil law countries prefer binding obligations within international agreements, common law countries prefer nonbinding obligations. To test these hypotheses, we use survival analysis to analyze the timing of the ratification of the PA by 175 countries. Crucially, the PA includes nonbinding obligations, particularly the emissions-cut pledges denoted as Nationally Determined Contributions. Our baseline estimate suggests that common law countries have a 71 % higher conditional probability of ratifying the PA than do civil law countries, supporting the international law hypothesis. This novel result holds up to a host of robustness checks and may help inform the design of future agreements. Moreover, we find some further support for the hypothesis based on international law from the Kyoto Protocol. For this agreement, in a subsample of Annex I countries with binding obligations, common law countries instead have a lower conditional probability of ratification.

This paper proposes and tests the hypotheses that (i) a legacy of irrigation agriculture is associated with a greater prevalence of intimate partner violence (IPV); and (ii) the presence of loamy soils strengthens this association. The proposed mechanisms are that irrigation agriculture has resulted in a tendency for women to be socially isolated and a cultural acceptance of IPV. We use individual survey data from India and an exogenous measure of historical irrigation. We find empirical support for our hypotheses and proposed mechanisms.

This paper studies the effect of legal origins (common law vs. civil law) on contemporary slum formation in developing countries. First, we provide a cross-country correlation analysis. Second, we provide a regression discontinuity analysis using household data from Cameroon. The results suggest that a common law heritage is associated with a lower probability of slum conditions. The legal philosophies transplanted through colonization appear to be associated with the pattern of contemporary urban housing stocks in developing countries.

This paper proposes that ancestral irrigation is associated with lower levels of contemporary female labor force participation. We test and provide support for this novel hypothesis using an exogenous measure of irrigation and cross-country data, data from the World Values Survey, the Afrobarometer, and the Asian Barometer. To explore a possible mechanism and cultural persistence, we use the Standard Cross-Cultural Sample, the European Social Survey, and the American Community Survey. The gender-based division of labor in pre-modern agriculture appears to be a possible channel between irrigation and contemporary female labor force participation rates. Evidence from second-generation immigrants suggests cultural transmission across generations, especially via males.

What factors determined the timing and duration of West European colonization? These colonization decisions have had profound economic, institutional, and social effects. Colonization is the process of creating a new and lasting political organization through invasion, conquest, and/or settlement, with a remote mother country that claims exclusive possession of the colony. The recent empirical literature finds that earlier transition to agriculture, longer statehood experience, and more advanced technology in 1500 AD delayed colonization. Using cross-country data from 136 present-day countries over 1462–1922 AD, we examine a novel hypothesis for which we find robust support: inherent land productivity was a positive determinant of colonization of new areas, and the duration of colonization. In contrast, several factors identified in the literature appear insignificant once we include land productivity. Plausible mechanisms are the need for immediate and continued food self-sufficiency, and the export potential back to a food- and resource-scarce Europe.

National climate change policies vary considerably across countries. This study explores how a country's adoption of climate change policies is influenced by its population's level of religiosity. We update and extend an existing cross-country index of climate change policy stringency. The cross-country analysis suggests that countries with populations exhibiting greater religious fervor tend to adopt less stringent climate change policies. Our findings shed new light on how a cultural dimension affects contemporary policy outcomes and may help policymakers identify obstacles to climate change policies.

The effects of the individualism vs. collectivism cultural dichotomy on economic outcomes have been widely recognized in the literature. We propose and test the hypothesis that individuals and populations located in areas exposed long-term to more ultraviolet radiation (UV-R; sunlight) exhibit a greater degree of collectivism. We provide individual level evidence using data from the World Values Survey, evidence from pre-industrial societies using data from the Standard Cross-Cultural Sample, and cross-country findings. We propose that the mechanism works via the eye disease cataract. Populations exposed to higher amounts of UV-R have higher incidence of cataract. A greater probability of eye disease raises the level of uncertainty avoidance and risk aversion, and increases the importance of close family or village bonds, facilitating the emergence of collectivism. This has provided an insurance mechanism against income shocks associated with poor eyesight and blindness. Moreover, humans tend to view disabilities such as blindness to indicate a positive probability of being associated with pathogen threats, resulting in less out-group interaction and greater collectivism. Empirical evidence supports this mechanism. (c) 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

This study explains the differences in technology adoption as a result of both culture and intellectual property rights (IPR) protection. We use data for 83 countries and 24 technologies for the time period 1980-2000. An individualistic culture, a strong IPR protection regime, and their joint effect are positively associated with technology adoption. The results hold up to a host of robustness checks. (c) 2021 Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

This paper first hypothesizes that countries that have accumulated more statehood experience over the last two millennia tend to have more stringent climate change policies. A second hypothesis is that there are also indirect effects via the rule of law, democracy, corruption, political instability, regulatory quality, and government effectiveness. Our empirical evidence provides support for these hypotheses. An early start helps both directly and indirectly. The strongest indirect effects occur through government effectiveness, rule of law, and corruption. Climate change policy analysis may take these findings into account and incorporate state capacity building and bureaucratic and legal reforms into the design of international environmental agreements. However, the effects are unlikely to arrive quickly.

The COVID-19 pandemic was associated with short-term air quality improvements in many countries around the world. We study whether the degree of democracy and political institutions played a role. We provide novel empirical evidence from 119 countries. A given stringency of COVID-19 containment and closure policies had a stronger effect on air quality in more democratic countries, and in countries with majoritarian rather than proportional electoral rules. Our estimates suggest that the improvement in air quality was around 57% greater in majoritarian systems than in proportional systems. Confidence in government, trust in politicians, and social capital also affected outcomes.

How does the historical legacy of agriculture affect democratic traditions in contemporary societies? This paper provides empirical evidence that inherent crop yield and democracy exhibit an inverted U-shaped relationship. This finding is supported by cross-country data from up to 147 countries, 186 pre-colonial societies, and the U.S. states. The relationship thus exhibits a highly persistent pattern. Crop yield is measured by kilocalories per hectare per year under rain-fed conditions, which has the advantage of being highly exogenous. The hump-shaped relationship holds up to a battery of robustness tests.

This paper proposes that ancestral use of irrigation reduces contemporary female labor force participation and female property rights. We test this hypothesis using an exogenous measure of irrigation and data from the Afrobarometer, cross-country data, the European Social Survey, the American Community Survey, and the India Demographic and Household Survey. Our hypothesis receives considerable empirical support. We find negative associations between ancestral irrigation and actual female labor force participation, and attitudes to such participation, in contemporary African and Indian populations, 2nd generation European immigrants, 1.5 and 2nd generation US immigrants, and in cross-country data. Moreover, ancestral irrigation is negatively associated with attitudes to female property rights in Africa and with measures of such rights across countries. Our estimates are robust to a host of control variables and alternative specifications. We propose multiple potential partial mechanisms. First, in pre-modern societies the men captured technologies complementary to irrigation, raising their relative productivity. Fertility increased. This caused lower female participation in agriculture and subsistence activities, and the women worked closer to home. Next, due to the common pool nature of irrigation water, historically irrigation has involved more frequent warfare. This raised the social status of men and restricted women's movement. These two mechanisms have produced cultural preferences against female participation in the formal labor market. Finally, irrigation produced both autocracy and a culture of collectivism. These are both associated with weaker female property rights.

Does environmental enforcement actions, including states’ strategic responses to neighbors’ policy choices, depend on governor party affiliation? Do governors of different parties use environmental policy instruments differently? Our paper addresses these questions. Accounting for endogeneity and omitted variable biases, we find that Democratic governors on average depress overall inspection rates versus their Republican counterparts, but not the frequency of punitive actions (except in the South). Strategic responses to neighbors do not depend on party affiliation. Finally, treating party affiliation as endogenous and allowing for strategic interaction effects both appear important for our estimations.

A speedy response made a significant difference to the number of infections and deaths due to COVID-19. Did legal philosophies matter for policy responses? We find that when 100 cases had been diagnosed (and 7-14 days thereafter), common law countries had implemented weaker measures than civil law countries. However, no significant difference is found for COVID-19 related deaths. Lower vulnerability is also associated with weaker policies.

Why do 20% of Swedes report having adopted a clean energy system while the corresponding share of Spaniards equals 0.4%? Using data for about 25,000 individuals across 33 countries, this study tests which cultural trait, individualism or collectivism, is associated with greater levels of clean technology adoption. Our fractional probit estimates suggest that individualistic individuals are more inclined to adopt clean energy systems for home and transport purposes. In particular, the adoption probability rises by an estimated 2% if a person exhibits individualistic values. This finding is not driven by country-specific tax or subsidy policies or market-specific determinants and is robust to controlling for individual and household characteristics, attitudes, social and personal norms and other significant dimensions of cultural differences. The results, therefore, facilitate an understanding of how the decision to adopt clean energy technologies can be driven by cultural factors.

A country’s cumulative experience with statehood influences its ability to consolidate power and create a capable bureaucracy. Longer statehood experience gives countries more time to adapt their laws to local needs, provided the legal system is adaptable. We find that, relative to British common law countries with the most flexible laws, German and Scandinavian civil law countries initially exhibit lower financial development. However, as their history of statehood grows longer, financial development improves in countries with adaptable laws such as the German and Scandinavian civil law countries. This is not the case in French civil law countries with more rigid legal systems. Our results mainly show no or at most a weakly negative effect of French civil law legal origin on financial development. We also explore how changes in stock market development over time, financial integration, and financial crisis are impacted by statehood experience, legal origins and their interaction.

A debate is brewing in the literature on whether legacies of rice and wheat cultivation in China matters for cultural attributes, in particular individualism vs. collectivism. In turn, this important cultural dimension has recently been shown to affect the pattern of innovation across countries. However, the previous literature has not firmly connected agricultural legacies and innovation rates, and has consistently used low resolution data. We study the role of agricultural legacy for innovation performance using unique patent data from close to two thousand Chinese counties. We provide robust evidence that counties with a legacy of rice cultivation generate fewer patent applications than other counties, and a legacy of wheat production tends to be associated with more patent applications. The results for rice are robust to, e.g., controlling for temperature, precipitation, irrigation, disease burden, religiosity, and corruption, as well as accounting for migration patterns. Our results firmly establish the importance of agricultural legacy for shaping the culture of innovation.

Higher exposure to ultraviolet radiation (UV-R) is associated with greater prevalence of eye disease such as cataracts. We hypothesize that the variation in the intensity of UV-R can help explain the differences in institutional quality observed across countries. The long-term incentive and ability to improve the quality of institutions decline when the probability of blindness increases. Our reduced-form cross-country results support this hypothesis. We then propose that the mechanism works from the impact of UV-R on the prevalence of eye disease, which in turn shapes institutions. Our empirical evidence lends considerable support to this hypothesis.

A country's cumulative experience with statehood influences its ability to consolidate power and create a capable bureaucracy. Longer statehood experience gives countries more time to adapt their laws to local needs, provided the legal system is adaptable. We find that, relative to British common law countries with the most flexible laws, German and Scandinavian civil law countries initially exhibit lower financial development. However, as their history of statehood grows longer, financial development improves in countries with adaptable laws such as the German and Scandinavian civil law countries. This is not the case in French civil law countries with more rigid legal systems. Our results mainly show no or at most a weakly negative effect of French civil law legal origin on financial development. We also explore how changes in stock market development over time, financial integration, and financial crises are impacted by statehood experience, legal origins and their interaction.