Topic: Cultural History
Diversity, Economic Growth and a Bug in the Research
Whether research shows benefits from diversity depends heavily on choice of study design
German Rebels Who Helped Lincoln Win the Civil War: A Natural Experiment in Leadership
Leaders of a failed 1848 revolt are followed to towns across the U.S.
Gesturing Left to Right for Passage of Time Occurs by Age 6
Cultural norms — reading and the calendar — affect native English-speakers’ motioning constructs
Historical Case for Immigrants Sending Home More Than Money
France’s lower fertility rates spread to regions that sent the most emigrants to live there
How French Governance Changed the Economic Trajectory of Vietnam’s Southern Region
Cultural shift under direct French rule appears to still drive today’s higher wages and consumption
How Local Governance Came to England’s Economy
Nico Voigtländer found that to combat arbitrary taxes and corruption, merchants persuaded the king to cede control
How the Seemingly Rapid Advance of Democracy Goes Astray
Using voting records from a unique transition in the 19th-century Caribbean, Christian Dippel examines the embrace of self-interest by new legislators
In Some Places, Fertility Rates Declined Before the Industrial Revolution
Using parish records, researchers examine fundamental changes in society following the French Revolution
Is a Bad Deed That Goes Unpunished Less Bad?
In experiments, immorality and harm are deemed more extreme merely because an act was punished
Leadership Matters: Countries Suffered Under Poor Quality Monarchs
Measuring inbreeding allows study to isolate rulers from circumstances
Locally, the Extent of British Rule in India Still Holds Back Economic Opportunity
Areas under direct rule lost the components of human capital
Ownership Structure of Tribal Land Exacts a Multibillion-Dollar Penalty
Can’t sell it, can’t borrow against it, can’t develop it
Parents Who Favor Boys Raise Girls Who Score Lower in Math
A clue that parents prefer a son: They have more kids when their firstborn is a girl
Rich People: Hated in China, Venerated in America?
Research suggests the nations actually have similar feelings toward wealth
Societies With a Legacy of Herding: More Prone to Current Day Violence
A culture that valorized revenge among pre-industrial herders resonates today
Testing 17 Theories on the Development of Complex Civilizations
Large-scale data project produces stark conclusion: military technology + agricultural productivity caused the takeoff