Stalin and the Origins of Mistrust

Milena Nikolova, Olga Popova and Vladimir Otrachshenko ()
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Vladimir Otrachshenko: National Bank of Slovakia (NBS)

No 12326, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: We show that current differences in trust levels within former Soviet Union countries can be traced back to the system of forced prison labor during Stalin's rule, which was marked by high incarceration rates, repression, and harsh punishments. We argue that those exposed to forced labor camps (gulags) became less trusting and transferred this social norm to their descendants. Combining contemporary individual-level survey data with historical information on the location of forced labor camps, we find that individuals who live near former gulags have low levels of social and institutional trust. Our results are robust to a battery of sensitivity checks, which suggests that the relationship we document is causal. We outline several causal mechanisms and test whether the social norm of mistrust near gulags developed because of political repression or due to fear that inmates bring criminality. As such, we provide novel evidence on the channels through which history matters for current socio-economic outcomes today.

Keywords: forced labor; social trust; economic history; former Soviet Union; trustworthiness; institutional trust (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D02 H10 N94 Z13 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 43 pages
Date: 2019-04
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-gro, nep-his and nep-lab
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (22)

Published - revised version published in: Journal of Public Economics , 2022, 208, 104629

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Related works:
Journal Article: Stalin and the origins of mistrust (2022)
Working Paper: Stalin and the origins of mistrust (2019)
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