Diffusion of Gender Norms: Evidence from Stalin's Ethnic Deportations

We study horizontal between-group cultural transmission using a unique historical setting, which combines exogenous group exposure with no control over whether and how the representativesof different groups interact. Stalin's ethnic deportations during WWII moved over 2 million people — the majority of whom were ethnic Germans and Chechens — from the Western parts of the USSR to Central Asia and Siberia. As a result, the native population of the deportation destinations was exogenously exposed to groups with drastically different gender norms. Combining historical archival data with contemporary surveys, we document that gender norms diffused from deportees tothe local population, resulting in changes in attitudes and behavior. Norms of gender equality diffused more than norms of gender discrimination.