Working Paper: CEPR ID: DP10451
Authors: Klaus Desmet; Ignacio Ortuno-Ortin; Romain Wacziarg
Abstract: We investigate the empirical relationship between ethnicity and culture, defined as a vector of traits reflecting norms, values and attitudes. Using surveys of individual values in 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.
Keywords: between-group diversity; civil conflict; cultural fractionalization; cultural traits; culture; ethnicity; heterogeneity; identity; social norms; within-group diversity
JEL Codes: D74; J15; P48; Z10
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Ethnic identity (J15) | Cultural values (Z10) |
| Cultural diversity (Z10) | Civil conflict (D74) |
| Cultural diversity (Z10) | Public goods provision (H41) |
| Overlap of cultural attitudes and ethnic identity (Z13) | Civil conflict (D74) |
| Overlap of cultural attitudes and ethnic identity (Z13) | Public goods provision (H41) |