Toward a comprehensive measure of socio-cultural diversity: The case of Germany

Milad Abbasiharofteh and Tom Brökel
Authors registered in the RePEc Author Service: Tom Broekel ()

A chapter in Spatial transformation: Processes, strategies, research design, 2022, pp 87-98 from ARL – Akademie für Raumentwicklung in der Leibniz-Gemeinschaft

Abstract: The positive impact of socio-cultural diversity on innovation and economic prosperity has been widely discussed. Yet, there is a lack of a clear quantitative indicator of sociocultural diversity. Most empirical works are limited to small case studies that follow various methods. This gap in the literature calls for a comprehensive measure whereby researchers could assess and compare diversity across cities and regions at the national level. Building on a unique database of registered associations (in German: eingetragene Vereine), this study provides a hierarchical categorization of associations based on their field of activities. Applying the Shannon entropy index, the sociocultural diversity of German regions is measured. The findings indicate a disparity between East and West Germany, reflecting the path-dependent nature of historical events. This article sets an agenda for future research.

Keywords: Socio-cultural diversity; associations; innovation; German regions (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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Related works:
Chapter: Toward a comprehensive measure of socio-cultural diversity: The case of Germany (2019)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:zbw:arlfba:251496

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