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Homeownership, Political Participation, and Social Capital in Post‐Communist Countries and Western Europe

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  • Peter Huber
  • Josef Montag

Abstract

We study whether the positive effects of homeownership on political participation and social capital, found in developed market economies, extend to post‐communist countries. We use the privatization of publicly‐owned housing in post‐communist countries as an exogenous source of variation of homeownership status to identify its impact on political participation and social capital formation. We find that homeownership is strongly related to higher participation in local‐level and national elections. In post‐communist countries, homeownership is also related to higher social trust. However, the positive association between homeownership and volunteering found in developed market economies does not extend to post‐communist countries. Together, our results corroborate that homeownership is associated with positive social benefits. However, these effects are highly heterogeneous and context‐dependent.

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  • Peter Huber & Josef Montag, 2020. "Homeownership, Political Participation, and Social Capital in Post‐Communist Countries and Western Europe," Kyklos, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 73(1), pages 96-119, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:kyklos:v:73:y:2020:i:1:p:96-119
    DOI: 10.1111/kykl.12218
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    1. Jirjahn, Uwe & Le, Thi Xuan Thu, 2023. "Works Councils and Workers' Party Preferences in Germany," IZA Discussion Papers 15879, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Stepan Mikula & Josef Montag, 2019. "Does homeownership hinder labor market activity? Evidence from housing privatization and restitution in Brno," MUNI ECON Working Papers 2019-06, Masaryk University, revised Feb 2023.
    3. Jeremy Clark & Abel François & Olivier Gergaud, 2020. "Electoral Turnout and Social Capital," Working Papers in Economics 20/13, University of Canterbury, Department of Economics and Finance.
    4. Szostak Michał, 2021. "Does Polish Post-Communist Cultural Burden Influence the Perception of Creative Identities?," Journal of Intercultural Management, Sciendo, vol. 13(2), pages 29-58, June.
    5. Szostak Michał, 2022. "Digitalisation and Virtualisation of the Aesthetic Situation Management: Polish Musical Art Creators during the COVID-19 Pandemic," Journal of Intercultural Management, Sciendo, vol. 14(2), pages 41-65, December.
    6. Michal Szostak, 2021. "Post-communist Burden Influence on the Perception of Crea-tive Identities: Consequences for Managers and Leaders," European Research Studies Journal, European Research Studies Journal, vol. 0(3), pages 282-302.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D62 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Externalities
    • D72 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
    • P14 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Capitalist Economies - - - Property Rights
    • P26 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Socialist and Transition Economies - - - Property Rights

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