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The Non-Cognitive Roots of Civic Honesty: Evidence from the US

Author

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  • Alessandro Bucciol

    (Department of Economics (University of Verona))

  • Luca Zarri

    (Department of Economics (University of Verona))

Abstract

Even though a large experimental literature explored the links between personality traits and honesty, available evidence is inconclusive. In this study, we provide large-scale evidence on the influence of the “Big Five” personality traits on civic honesty, by considering the role played by individuals’ socioeconomic status. To this aim, we rely on survey data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), which is representative of the US population aged 50 or more. We show that most “Big Five” traits significantly affect civic honesty, with Agreeableness being the strongest predictor. We view our findings as complementing and extending to civic-minded behavior the results of prior work on cheating based on small samples and non-representative subject pools.

Suggested Citation

  • Alessandro Bucciol & Luca Zarri, 2021. "The Non-Cognitive Roots of Civic Honesty: Evidence from the US," Working Papers 02/2021, University of Verona, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:ver:wpaper:02/2021
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Civic Honesty; Personality Traits; Socioeconomic Status;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D63 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement
    • D91 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making
    • I31 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - General Welfare, Well-Being

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