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Do religious beliefs affect borrowing behavior? Evidence from Chinese households

Author

Listed:
  • Zhong Chunping

    (NAES, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences)

  • Pan Li

    (China Securities Regulatory Commission, China Institute of Finance and Capital Markets and Tsinghua University
    HUST)

  • Shu Lingwei

    (New York University)

Abstract

This paper discusses the impact of religious culture on micro financial decisions. Data concerning the religious beliefs of Chinese respondents was collected in 2007. We analyzed the data for the potential influence of religious beliefs on household borrowing decisions. By applying the ordered logit regression methods and IV estimator, we found that respondents with a religious family background borrowed less when other conditions remained unchanged. It was also discovered that, compared with non-believers, Buddhists borrow less than adherents of other religions. No other religious beliefs had a statistically significant influence. That is to say, different religious denominations exert different influences on Chinese household borrowing decisions.

Suggested Citation

  • Zhong Chunping & Pan Li & Shu Lingwei, 2016. "Do religious beliefs affect borrowing behavior? Evidence from Chinese households," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 14(4), pages 989-1005, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:reveho:v:14:y:2016:i:4:d:10.1007_s11150-016-9324-2
    DOI: 10.1007/s11150-016-9324-2
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Religious believing; Religious denomination; Borrowing behavior;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D14 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Household Saving; Personal Finance
    • D03 - Microeconomics - - General - - - Behavioral Microeconomics: Underlying Principles
    • G02 - Financial Economics - - General - - - Behavioral Finance: Underlying Principles

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