The Effect of Childhood Environment on Political Behavior

Jacob Brown, Enrico Cantoni, Sahil Chinoy, Martin Koenen and Vincent Pons

No 18515, CEPR Discussion Papers from Centre for Economic Policy Research

Abstract: We estimate the effect of childhood environment on future political behavior. Linking national voter files to Census Bureau and commercial address data, we compare children who moved between the same counties but at different ages. Growing up in a county where their peers are 10 p.p. more likely to affiliate with the Republican Party makes children 4.7 p.p. more likely to do so. The effects are similar for Democratic affiliation and slightly larger for registration and turnout. Exposure during adolescence is especially influential and effects decay slightly after the first election. They reflect both state-level factors and more local forces.

Keywords: Political behavior; Voter turnout (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D72 P00 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023-10
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Working Paper: The Effect of Childhood Environment on Political Behavior (2023)
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