Social Exclusion and Social Preferences: Evidence from Colombia's Leper Colony
American Economic Review
vol. 113,
no. 5, May 2023
(pp. 1294-1333)
Abstract
This paper explores the intergenerational consequences of social exclusion on prosociality. A lab-in-the-field approach in the historical region of Colombia's leper colony reveals that descendants of socially excluded individuals are locally altruistic and extend such altruism to outsiders who have undergone similar circumstances. These individuals also display mistrust toward those who have, historically, been exclusionary—in this case, doctors. The content of historical narratives shared by ancestors who were excluded, which emphasize the endured mistreatment and doctors' historical misinformation, is one mechanism that partially explains the intergenerational patterns.Citation
Ramos-Toro, Diego. 2023. "Social Exclusion and Social Preferences: Evidence from Colombia's Leper Colony." American Economic Review, 113 (5): 1294-1333. DOI: 10.1257/aer.20201332Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- D64 Altruism; Philanthropy; Intergenerational Transfers
- H51 National Government Expenditures and Health
- I12 Health Behavior
- I18 Health: Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health
- N36 Economic History: Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy: Latin America; Caribbean
- N96 Regional and Urban History: Latin America; Caribbean
- Z13 Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification