IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wly/jmoncb/v41y2009i2-3p555-566.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Individual's Religiosity Enhances Trust: Latin American Evidence for the Puzzle

Author

Listed:
  • PABLO BRAÑAS‐GARZA
  • MÁXIMO ROSSI
  • DAYNA ZACLICEVER

Abstract

This paper explores the effect of religious observance and affiliation to the dominant religion (Catholicism) on trust in institutions and toward others, and market attitudes. The analysis is performed using a Latin American database of 20,000 respondents from 2004 by means of ordered probit models. The most interesting results are: (i) Trust toward others is positively correlated with both religious observance and Catholic affiliation (and practice). (ii) There is a positive correlation between trust in the government, in the police, in the armed forces, in the judiciary and in the banking system and religious practice in general. Identical positive findings are obtained for Catholic affiliation and practice, although they may be affected by a majority effect. Moreover, there is no evidence to support the hypotheses of a negative effect of religion on social capital.

Suggested Citation

  • Pablo Brañas‐Garza & Máximo Rossi & Dayna Zaclicever, 2009. "Individual's Religiosity Enhances Trust: Latin American Evidence for the Puzzle," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 41(2‐3), pages 555-566, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:jmoncb:v:41:y:2009:i:2-3:p:555-566
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1538-4616.2009.00222.x
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1538-4616.2009.00222.x
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/j.1538-4616.2009.00222.x?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Zak, Paul J & Knack, Stephen, 2001. "Trust and Growth," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 111(470), pages 295-321, April.
    2. Cox, James C., 2004. "How to identify trust and reciprocity," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 46(2), pages 260-281, February.
    3. La Porta, Rafael, et al, 1997. "Trust in Large Organizations," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 87(2), pages 333-338, May.
    4. Pablo BraÒas-Garza & Shoshana Neuman, 2004. "Analyzing Religiosity within an Economic Framework: The Case of Spanish Catholics," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 2(1), pages 5-22, March.
    5. Laurence R. Iannaccone, 1998. "Introduction to the Economics of Religion," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 36(3), pages 1465-1495, September.
    6. Guiso, Luigi & Sapienza, Paola & Zingales, Luigi, 2003. "People's opium? Religion and economic attitudes," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 50(1), pages 225-282, January.
    7. Laurence R. Iannaccone, 1998. "Corrigenda [Introduction to the Economics of Religion]," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 36(4), pages 1941-1941, December.
    8. Brañas-Garza, Pablo & Neuman, Shoshana, 2006. "Intergenerational Transmission of 'Religious Capital': Evidence from Spain," IZA Discussion Papers 2183, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    9. Robert J. Barro & Rachel M. McCleary, 2002. "Religion and Political Economy in an International Panel," NBER Working Papers 8931, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    10. McCleary, Rachel & Barro, Robert, 2003. "Religion and Economic Growth across Countries," Scholarly Articles 3708464, Harvard University Department of Economics.
    11. Edward L. Glaeser & Bruce I. Sacerdote, 2008. "Education and Religion," Journal of Human Capital, University of Chicago Press, vol. 2(2), pages 188-215.
    12. Rachel M. McCleary & Robert J. Barro, 2006. "Religion and Economy," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 20(2), pages 49-72, Spring.
    13. Robert J. Barro & Rachel McCleary, 2003. "Religion and Economic Growth," NBER Working Papers 9682, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    14. Torgler, Benno, 2006. "The importance of faith: Tax morale and religiosity," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 61(1), pages 81-109, September.
    15. Azzi, Corry & Ehrenberg, Ronald G, 1975. "Household Allocation of Time and Church Attendance," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 83(1), pages 27-56, February.
    16. Productivity Commission, 2003. "Social capital: reviewing the concept and its policy implications," Public Economics 0307001, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Hong, Seiwoong & Lee, Junyong & Oh, Frederick Dongchuhl & Shin, Donglim, 2023. "Religion and foreign direct investment," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 32(1).
    2. Tamilina, Larysa, 2012. "Social policies and trust in the social security system," MPRA Paper 96519, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Tamilina, Larysa, 2011. "Policy specific effects of welfare states’ impact on social trust," MPRA Paper 96515, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Tamilina, Larysa, 2012. "Characteristics of social policies and social trust," MPRA Paper 96517, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    5. Berggren, Niclas & Bjørnskov, Christian, 2011. "Is the importance of religion in daily life related to social trust? Cross-country and cross-state comparisons," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 80(3), pages 459-480.
    6. Ma, Xunzhou & Wu, Zhen-Xing, 2019. "Do sacred texts glorifying Allah facilitate Muslims’ trust and trustworthiness? Evidence from field experiments in China," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    7. Badaoui, Eliane, 2023. "Which dimensions of religiosity matter for trust? New insights from the MENA region," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 167(C).
    8. Tamilina, Larysa, 2011. "The Impact of Welfare States on Social Trust Formation: A Multidimensional Approach," MPRA Paper 96489, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    9. Tamilina, Larysa, 2018. "The impact of welfare states on social trust: theoretical and empirical foundations," MPRA Paper 96512, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    10. Heineck, Guido, 2014. "Love thy neighbor: Religion and prosocial behavior," BERG Working Paper Series 93, Bamberg University, Bamberg Economic Research Group.
    11. Neuman, Shoshana & Brañas-Garza, Pablo & Espin, Antonio M., 2013. "Effects of religiosity on social behaviour: Experimental evidence from a representative sample of Spaniards," CEPR Discussion Papers 9709, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    12. Dominika Ochnik & Aleksandra M. Rogowska & Ana Arzenšek & Joy Benatov, 2022. "Can Fear of COVID-19 Be Predicted by Religiosity and Trust in Institutions among Young Adults? A Prospective Cross-National Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(11), pages 1-15, June.
    13. Tamilina, Larysa, 2011. "The welfare state and social trust: a three-dimensional approach of analysis," MPRA Paper 96513, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    14. Jaime Ortiz, 2009. "Does Religion Distribution Matter in the Economic Growth of Latin America?," International Journal of Business and Economics, School of Management Development, Feng Chia University, Taichung, Taiwan, vol. 8(3), pages 183-199, December.
    15. Tamilina, Larysa, 2018. "Theories of social trust formation: a brief literature overview," MPRA Paper 96511, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    16. Pablo Brañas-Garza & Antonio M Espín & Shoshana Neuman, 2014. "Religious Pro-Sociality? Experimental Evidence from a Sample of 766 Spaniards," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 9(8), pages 1-11, August.
    17. Searing, Elizabeth A.M., 2013. "Love thy neighbor? Recessions and interpersonal trust in Latin America," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 94(C), pages 68-79.
    18. Tamilina, Larysa, 2011. "The welfare state and social trust: a descriptive analysis," MPRA Paper 96514, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    19. Juan José Barrios & Nestor Gandelman, 2011. "Religion, trust and reciprocity: evidence from six Latin American cities," Documentos de Investigación 69, Universidad ORT Uruguay. Facultad de Administración y Ciencias Sociales.
    20. M. Niaz Asadullah, 2017. "Who Trusts Others? Community and Individual Determinants of Social Capital in a Low-Income Country," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 41(2), pages 515-544.
    21. Matteo Migheli & Margherita Saraceno, 2023. "On the propensity to settle or litigate in laboratory disputes," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 40(2), pages 615-642, July.
    22. Al-Azzam, Moh’d & Parmeter, Christopher F. & Sarangi, Sudipta, 2020. "On the complex relationship between different aspects of social capital and group loan repayment," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 92-107.
    23. Tamilina, Larysa, 2018. "A brief overview of approaches to defining social trust," MPRA Paper 96510, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    24. Tamilina, Larysa, 2011. "Decommodification and stratification effects on social trust," MPRA Paper 96516, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    25. Tamilina, Larysa, 2012. "Group specific effects of social policies on social trust," MPRA Paper 96518, University Library of Munich, Germany.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Benito Arruñada, 2010. "Protestants and Catholics: Similar Work Ethic, Different Social Ethic," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 120(547), pages 890-918, September.
    2. Bettendorf, L. & Dijkgraaf, E., 2010. "Religion and income: Heterogeneity between countries," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 74(1-2), pages 12-29, May.
    3. L. Bettendorf & E. Dijkgraaf, 2008. "Religion and Income," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 08-014/3, Tinbergen Institute.
    4. Kirchmaier, Isadora & Prüfer, Jens & Trautmann, Stefan T., 2018. "Religion, moral attitudes and economic behavior," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 148(C), pages 282-300.
    5. Granger, Maury D. & Price, Gregory N., 2007. "The tree of science and original sin: Do christian religious beliefs constrain the supply of scientists?," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 36(1), pages 144-160, February.
    6. Brañas-Garza, Pablo & García-Muñoz, Teresa & Neuman, Shoshana, 2007. "Unravelling Secularization: An International Study," IZA Discussion Papers 3251, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    7. Charles Noussair & Stefan Trautmann & Gijs Kuilen & Nathanael Vellekoop, 2013. "Risk aversion and religion," Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, Springer, vol. 47(2), pages 165-183, October.
    8. Mariya Aleksynska & Barry Chiswick, 2013. "The determinants of religiosity among immigrants and the native born in Europe," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 11(4), pages 563-598, December.
    9. Janine Höhener & Christoph A. Schaltegger, 2012. "Religionsökonomie: eine Übersicht," CREMA Working Paper Series 2012-08, Center for Research in Economics, Management and the Arts (CREMA).
    10. Ronen Bar-El & Teresa García-Muñoz & Shoshana Neuman & Yossef Tobol, 2013. "The evolution of secularization: cultural transmission, religion and fertility—theory, simulations and evidence," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 26(3), pages 1129-1174, July.
    11. Tu, Qin & Bulte, Erwin & Tan, Shuhao, 2011. "Religiosity and economic performance: Micro-econometric evidence from Tibetan area," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(1), pages 55-63, March.
    12. Wang, Jimin & Wang, Cong, 2021. "Can religions explain cross country differences in innovative activities?," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
    13. Philipp Ager & Antonio Ciccone, 2013. "Rainfall Risk and Religious Membership in the Late Nineteenth-Century US," Working Papers 2013-17, FEDEA.
    14. Kirchmaier, Isadora & Prüfer, Jens & Trautmann, Stefan T., 2018. "Religion, moral attitudes & economic behavior," Other publications TiSEM 669f51df-0d23-4657-8b16-5, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    15. Rupasingha, Anil & Chilton, John b., 2009. "Religious adherence and county economic growth in the US," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 72(1), pages 438-450, October.
    16. Méon, Pierre-Guillaume & Tojerow, Ilan, 2019. "The minority ethic: Rethinking religious denominations, minority status, and educational achievement across the globe," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 47(1), pages 196-214.
    17. Matthias Basedau & Simone Gobien & Sebastian Prediger, 2018. "The Multidimensional Effects Of Religion On Socioeconomic Development: A Review Of The Empirical Literature," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(4), pages 1106-1133, September.
    18. Unbreen Qayyum & Sohail Anjum & Samina Sabir, 2020. "Religion and economic development: new insights," Empirica, Springer;Austrian Institute for Economic Research;Austrian Economic Association, vol. 47(4), pages 793-834, November.
    19. Robert MacCulloch & Silvia Pezzini, 2010. "The Roles of Freedom, Growth, and Religion in the Taste for Revolution," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 53(2), pages 329-358, May.
    20. Baele, Lieven & Farooq, Moazzam & Ongena, Steven, 2014. "Of religion and redemption: Evidence from default on Islamic loans," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 141-159.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • Z12 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Religion
    • Z13 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:wly:jmoncb:v:41:y:2009:i:2-3:p:555-566. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/journal.asp?ref=0022-2879 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.