The long-term effects of genocide on antisocial preferences

Lata Gangadharan (), Asad Islam, Chandarany Ouch and Liang Wang

World Development, 2022, vol. 160, issue C

Abstract: We conduct an artefactual field experiment to examine the long-term effects of exposure to violence due to the Cambodian genocide (1975–1979), during childhood and adolescence, on individuals’ antisocial behaviors. Since antisocial behavior can co-exist with other preferences, we also investigate the effect of this exposure on prosocial and risk-taking behaviors. We find that as district-level mortality rates increase, individuals who directly experienced violence during the genocide period exhibit greater antisocial and risk-taking behaviors decades later. These effects are relatively muted among individuals who did not directly experience genocidal violence. The results imply significant long-term effects on antisocial and risk preferences in association with direct exposure to genocidal violence.

Keywords: Civil conflict; Khmer Rouge; Violence exposure; Social preferences; Artefactual field experiment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C91 C93 D74 O12 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:160:y:2022:i:c:s0305750x22002583

DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2022.106068

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