Ancestors, inter-generational transmission of attitudes, and corporate performance: Evidence from the Italian Mass Migration

Erminia Florio and Stefano Manfredonia

No 830, GLO Discussion Paper Series from Global Labor Organization (GLO)

Abstract: We study the effect of the attitudes of a CEO's ancestors on firm performance. To do so, we collect detailed information on emigrants from Italian municipalities during the Age of Mass Migration (1892-1924) from Ellis Island ships lists and use emigration experience as a proxy for ancestors' risk propensity. We adopt an epidemiological approach complemented with an instrumental variables strategy and find that Italian firms managed by a CEO that belongs to a family with past emigration experience tend to perform better and to be more productive. In line with an inter-generational transmission of attitudes hypothesis, we show a positive relationship between the emigration experience of a CEO's ancestors and alternative measures of corporate risk-taking. The attitudes of a CEO's ancestors have as well consequences on firm solvency and on the cost of capital.

Keywords: Emigration; Attitudes; Corporate Performance; Mass Migration (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: G30 M14 Z1 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-bec, nep-cfn, nep-eur and nep-mig
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:zbw:glodps:830

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