The Effect of Cultural Values on Economic Development: Theory, Hypotheses, and Some Empirical Tests

Abstract

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Does education engender cultural values that matter for economic growth?

“…Empirical research has demonstrated that culture can and does change (Granato et al, 1996;Jones, 2006). Moreover, cultural values are transmitted within and between generations and societies through technologies of communications, trading and immigration (Jones, 2006).…”

“…Recently some scholars have emphasized the need to examine the role of cultural attributes of populations as a determinant of economic growth (Greif 1994, Granato et al 1996and Swank 1996. Since Weber (1958) analyzed the linkages between the Protestant Ethic and the rise of capitalism in Europe, many scholars have investigated which cultural attitudes and beliefs facilitate economic progress.…”

“…McClelland (1961McClelland ( , 1963) also suggest that high concentrations of values emphasizing the need for achievement are the engines that drive economic growth. In a similar line of analysis, Granato et al (1996) explored how cultural measures -in terms of values that reflect emphasis on autonomy and economic achievement vis-à-vis values that reflect emphasis on conformity to traditional social norms-can be used to examine the effect of achievement motivation on growth. Their results suggest that countries that put more emphasis on thrift and hard work rather than obedience and religious faith tend to enjoy high economic growth as compared to countries that emphasize obedience and religious faith.…”

Values and Norms Matter - On the Basic Determinants of Long-Run Economic Development

“…Yet, highly professional survey organizations know how to deal with these issues and the responses can tell us quite about the values and norms that real people hold. Previous work by Granato, Inglehart & Leblang (1996) has used this approach, though with an emphasis on growth rather than levels of development. In a recent work closer to this one, Licht, Goldschmidt & Schwartz (2007) use survey data collected by Schwartz (2004) 19 to correlate cultural dimensions with "the rule of law, corruption and democratic accountability" (p. 659).…”

Do Institutions and Culture Matter for Business Cycles?

“…Weber (1904) was the first to point out that the two may be connected. More recently Hofstede (1980), Granato et al (1996) and Tabellini (2011), among others, document that certain cultural factors affect on economic development, over and above those due to macroeconomic or institutional factors. However, whether cultural features are related to the structure and the transmission of business cycles is, to the best of our knowledge, still a completely unexplored area.…”