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The Social Dynamics of Collective Action: Evidence from the Captain Swing Riots, 1830-31

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  • Toke Aidt
  • Gabriel Leon
  • Max Satchell

Abstract

Social unrest often erupts suddenly and diffuses quickly. What drives people to overcome their collective action problem and join a riot or protest, turning what is initially a small event into a widespread movement? We address this question by examining the Swing riots of 1830-31. The communication constraints of the time induced spatio-temporal variation in exposure to news about the uprising, allowing us to estimate the role of contagion in the spread of the riots. We find that local (rather than national) sources of information were central in driving contagion, and that this contagion magnified the impact that social and economic fundamentals had on riots by a factor of 2.65. Our historical data allow us to overcome a number of econometric challenges, but the Swing riots are of independent interest as well: they contributed to the passage of the Great Reform Act, a key step in Britain’s institutional development.

Suggested Citation

  • Toke Aidt & Gabriel Leon & Max Satchell, 2017. "The Social Dynamics of Collective Action: Evidence from the Captain Swing Riots, 1830-31," CESifo Working Paper Series 6773, CESifo.
    • Handle: RePEc:ces:ceswps:_6773
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    2. Zareh Asatryan & Annika Havlik & Frank Streif, 2017. "Vetoing and inaugurating policy like others do: evidence on spatial interactions in voter initiatives," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 172(3), pages 525-544, September.
    3. Eric Melander & Martina Miotto, 2023. "Welfare Cuts and Crime: Evidence from the New Poor Law," The Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 133(651), pages 1248-1264.
    4. Camilo García-Jimeno & Angel Iglesias & Pinar Yildirim, 2022. "Information Networks and Collective Action: Evidence from the Women's Temperance Crusade," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 112(1), pages 41-80, January.
    5. Raphael L'evy & Marcin Pk{e}ski & Nicolas Vieille, 2022. "Stationary social learning in a changing environment," Papers 2201.02122, arXiv.org.
    6. Elkhan Richard Sadik-Zada, 2020. "Distributional Bargaining and the Speed of Structural Change in the Petroleum Exporting Labor Surplus Economies," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 32(1), pages 51-98, January.
    7. Camilo García-Jimeno & Angel Iglesias & Pinar Yildirim, 2018. "Women, Rails and Telegraphs: An Empirical Study of Information Diffusion and Collective Action," NBER Working Papers 24495, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    8. Geloso, Vincent & Kufenko, Vadim, 2019. "Can markets foster rebellion? The case of the 1837–38 rebellions in Lower Canada," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 166(C), pages 263-287.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    riots; diffusion; conflict; contagion; Captain Swing;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D72 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
    • D74 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Conflict; Conflict Resolution; Alliances; Revolutions
    • O16 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Financial Markets; Saving and Capital Investment; Corporate Finance and Governance

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