Working Paper: NBER ID: w23214
Authors: Julio J. Elias; Nicola Lacetera; Mario Macis; Paola Salardi
Abstract: The regulation of many activities depends on whether societies consider them morally controversial or “repugnant”. Not only have regulation and related ethical concerns changed over time, but there is also heterogeneity across countries at a given time. We provide evidence of this heterogeneity for three morally contentious activities: abortion, prostitution and gestational surrogacy, and explore the relationship between a country’s economic conditions and how these activities are regulated. We propose a conceptual framework to identify mechanisms that can explain our findings (including the role of non-economic factors), and indicate directions for future research.
Keywords: Economic development; Regulation; Morally contentious activities; Abortion; Prostitution; Gestational surrogacy
JEL Codes: D02; I18; K42; O17; O43; O57; Z12; Z18
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| higher GDP per capita (E20) | more permissive abortion legislation (J18) |
| higher GDP per capita (E20) | greater likelihood of legislating on prostitution (J18) |
| improved economic conditions (N12) | reduced costs associated with prohibition (for abortion) (J13) |
| economic development (O29) | greater acceptance of women's autonomy (J16) |
| greater acceptance of women's autonomy (J16) | more permissive regulations for abortion and surrogacy (J13) |
| increased attention to preventing exploitation (J82) | stricter regulations in certain contexts (for prostitution) (L88) |