Culture, Ethnicity, and Diversity
- (pp. 2479-2513)
(Complimentary)
Abstract
We investigate the empirical relationship between ethnicity and culture, defined as a vector of traits reflecting norms, values, and attitudes. Using survey data for 76 countries, we find that ethnic identity is a significant predictor of cultural values, yet that within-group variation in culture trumps between-group variation. Thus, in contrast to a commonly held view, ethnic and cultural diversity are unrelated. Although only a small portion of a country's overall cultural heterogeneity occurs between groups, we find that various political economy outcomes (such as civil conflict and public goods provision) worsen when there is greater overlap between ethnicity and culture.Citation
Desmet, Klaus, Ignacio Ortuño-Ortín, and Romain Wacziarg. 2017. "Culture, Ethnicity, and Diversity." American Economic Review, 107 (9): 2479-2513. DOI: 10.1257/aer.20150243Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- D74 Conflict; Conflict Resolution; Alliances; Revolutions
- H41 Public Goods
- J15 Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
- O15 Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration
- O17 Formal and Informal Sectors; Shadow Economy; Institutional Arrangements
- Z13 Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification