In this issue we feature 7 current papers on the theme of social capital:

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1. Keeping It in the Family: Lineage Organization and the Scope of Trust in Sub-Saharan Africa - Jacob Moscona; Nathan Nunn; James A. Robinson
2. Governance Structures and Trust: a Study of Real Estate Networks - Boaventura, Joao Mauricio; Carnaúba, A.A.C.; Todeva, Emanuela; Azevedo, A.C.; Armando, Eduardo
3. Signaling Cooperation - Heinz, Matthias; Schumacher, Heiner
4. Reciprocity and honesty in capital budgeting: Positive spill-over effects of reporting - Ostermaier, Andreas
5. When do the poor vote for the right-wing and why: Status inequality and vote choice in the Indian states - Pavithra Suryanarayan
6. An Economic Theory of Religious Belief - Strulik, Holger
7. Connecting the Young: high school graduates' matching to first jobs in booms and great recessions - Hensvik, Lena; Müller, Dagmar; Nordström Skans, Oskar

1. Keeping It in the Family: Lineage Organization and the Scope of Trust in Sub-Saharan Africa

   Jacob Moscona

   Nathan Nunn

   James A. Robinson

 We present evidence that the traditional structure of society is an important  determinant of the scope of trust today. Within Africa, individuals belonging  to ethnic groups that organized society using segmentary lineages exhibit a  more limited scope of trust, measured by the gap between trust in relatives  and trust in non-relatives. This trust gap arises because of lower levels of  trust in non-relatives and not higher levels of trust in relatives. A causal  interpretation of these correlations is supported by the fact that the  effects are primarily found in rural areas where these forms of organization  are still prevalent.

   JEL: N00 O10 Z1 Z13

URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:23196&r=soc

2. Governance Structures and Trust: a Study of Real Estate Networks

   Boaventura, Joao Mauricio

   Carnaúba, A.A.C.

   Todeva, Emanuela

   Azevedo, A.C.

   Armando, Eduardo

 The present study aimed at verifying how different modes of governance  structure are linked to different levels of interorganisational trust. Its  theoretical grounding involves Transaction Cost Theory, which studies  governance of interorganisational arrangements and research on trust in the  business field. A descriptive and quantitative approach has been adopted to  describe the relation between trust amongst business network participants and  the mode of governance adopted by the surveyed networks. Hence, a detailed  questionnaire has been employed, which was answered by 35 real estate agency  managers, whose participation was directly linked to 11 business networks. By  using Spearman methods of identification of non-parametric correlation and  correspondence analysis, it was possible to verify that certain modes of  governance structure associate with different levels of trust. Considering  the scarcity of quantitative research on the theme, this paper contributes to  the field by presenting results which point out that collectively-managed  governance of regional cooperation networks is linked to high levels of  trust; whereas governance of dispersed networks with the presence of a lead  company are linked to low levels of trust. Medium levels of trust were  observed in networks governed by an administrative organisation. Considering  the practical aspect of administration in networks, one can conclude that the  process of governance structure in such interorganisational arrangements  should include deliberations about the influence of the adopted mode of  governance on trust amongst participants. The paper does not allow  generalizations of its conclusions beyond its chosen sample.

   Keywords: Brazil; competitiveness; governance structure; real estate networks; dimensions of trust

   JEL: M1

URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:76785&r=soc

3. Signaling Cooperation

   Heinz, Matthias

   Schumacher, Heiner

 We examine what an applicant’s vita signals to potential employers about her  willingness to cooperate in teams. Intensive social engagement may credibly  reveal that an applicant cares about the well‐being of others and therefore  is less likely to free‐ride in teamwork situations. We find that  contributions in a public goods game strongly increase in a subject’s degree  of social engagement as indicated on her résumé (and rated by an independent  third party). Engagement in other domains, such as student or sports  associations, is not positively correlated with contributions. In a  prediction experiment with human resource managers from various industries,  we find that managers use résumé content effectively to predict relative  differences in subjects’ willingness to cooperate. Thus, young professionals  signal important behavioral characteristics to potential employers through  the choice of their extracurricular activities.

   JEL: C72 C92 D82

URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:vfsc16:145648&r=soc

4. Reciprocity and honesty in capital budgeting: Positive spill-over effects of reporting

   Ostermaier, Andreas

 Capital rationing and reporting are often combined to allocate resources in  firms. Trust in managers' honest reports and distrustful control create an  interesting tension. How do managers respond to this ambivalence of trust and  control? We develop an analytical model to predict, first, that managers  reciprocate distrust; they misreport heavily so as to sabotage profitable  investments. Second, reporting reduces in turn sabotage because managers are  reluctant to lie. Third, honesty spills over, in addition, to inhibit  managers' reciprocity. Evidence from a laboratory experiment supports our  predictions. Our study ties capital rationing and reporting to the  psychological factors of reciprocity and honesty and helps us understand  their effects in budgeting. From a managerial viewpoint, the value of  reporting, even in combination with capital rationing, may be as interesting  to see as how sabotage further exacerbates the underinvestment which is known  to arise from capital rationing.

   JEL: D03 G31 M41

URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:vfsc16:145904&r=soc

5. When do the poor vote for the right-wing and why: Status inequality and vote choice in the Indian states

   Pavithra Suryanarayan

 What explains the popularity of right-wing parties amongst the poor? This  paper argues that in hierarchical societies with high social-status  inequality, poor high-status voters may ally with rich high-status voters if  they believe their social-status is under threat. I demonstrate this in the  context of the Indian states by exploiting an announcement by the Government  of India in 1990 to implement affirmative action for lower castes—an  intervention that threatened to weaken the social-status of upper-caste  Brahmans. Using unique data from the 1931 census, this paper shows that areas  where Brahmans were more dominant in the 1930s experienced a higher surge in  rightwing voting after this announcement than other areas. Using survey data,  I find that both wealthy and poor Brahmans voted for the right-wing where  Brahmans were dominant in 1931. The paper shows how concerns about  social-status may make the poor open to appeals by anti-redistribution  parties.

URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:unu:wpaper:wp2017-20&r=soc

6. An Economic Theory of Religious Belief

   Strulik, Holger

 In this paper I consider how individuals allocate their time between church  attendance (and other religious activities) and secular leisure activities.

 Moreover individuals use a cognitive style, which is either  intuitive-believing or reflective-analytical. I assume that the full benefit  from religious activities is achieved by intuitive believers. The model  predicts that, ceteris paribus, wealthier individuals and individuals with  higher cognitive ability are more likely to abandon the intuitive-believing  cognitive style. They may continue to attend church but do so less frequently  than intuitive believers. In general equilibrium, there exists a locally  stable steady state where believing and frequent church attendance is  widespread across the social strata. A sufficiently large negative shock  (e.g. the Enlightenment, repeal of Sunday shopping laws), however, initiates  the gradual secularization of society.

   JEL: N30 D11 Z12

URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:vfsc16:145591&r=soc

7. Connecting the Young: high school graduates' matching to first jobs in booms and great recessions

   Hensvik, Lena (IFAU - Institute for Evaluation of Labour Market and Education Policy)

   Müller, Dagmar (IFAU, Uppsala university and UCLS)

   Nordström Skans, Oskar (Uppsala university, IFAU, UCLS and IZA)  Using Swedish economy-wide data spanning across two deep recessions, we  examine the relationship between labor market conditions and the role of  social contacts in matching labor market entrants to employing firms. We use  class-plant fixed-effects models to isolate the role of social contacts from  paid work during high-school. One third of post-graduation matches are formed  at establishments where youths worked during their studies. Furthermore,  graduates are much more likely to match with sites to which adult coworkers  from these jobs have relocated. These patterns are strikingly  counter-cyclical. Contacts are much more important for job matching in deep  recessions than in good times, suggesting that informal contacts and social  networks are crucial determinants of matching patterns in bad times.

   Keywords: job matching; social Contacts; business cycle; young workers

   JEL: J01

URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:ifauwp:2017_002&r=soc

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