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Universalism: Global Evidence

Author

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  • Alexander W. Cappelen
  • Benjamin Enke
  • Bertil Tungodden

Abstract

This paper leverages nationally representative surveys across 60 countries and 64,000 respondents to present novel stylized facts about the relationship-specific nature of altruism. Across individuals, universalist preferences systematically vary with demographics such as age and religiosity and are predictive of many left-wing political views, albeit in culturally highly heterogeneous ways. Across countries, universalism is strongly linked to a broader radius of trust. Looking at origins, universalism varies with the economic, political, and religious organization of societies in ways that are consistent with the idea that the scope of altruism is partly shaped by economic incentives and democracy.

Suggested Citation

  • Alexander W. Cappelen & Benjamin Enke & Bertil Tungodden, 2025. "Universalism: Global Evidence," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 115(1), pages 43-76, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:aea:aecrev:v:115:y:2025:i:1:p:43-76
    DOI: 10.1257/aer.20230038
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    1. Ingvild Almås & Alexander W. Cappelen & Bertil Tungodden, 2020. "Cutthroat Capitalism versus Cuddly Socialism: Are Americans More Meritocratic and Efficiency-Seeking than Scandinavians?," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 128(5), pages 1753-1788.
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    10. Falk, Armin & Boneva, Teodora & Chopra, Felix, 2021. "Fighting Climate Change: the Role of Norms, Preferences, and Moral Values," CEPR Discussion Papers 16343, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
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    13. Benjamin Enke & Ricardo Rodríguez-Padilla & Florian Zimmermann, 2023. "Moral Universalism and the Structure of Ideology," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 90(4), pages 1934-1962.
    14. Angelo Romano & Matthias Sutter & James H. Liu & Toshio Yamagishi & Daniel Balliet, 2022. "Author Correction: National parochialism is ubiquitous across 42 nations around the world," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-1, December.
    15. Avner Greif, 2006. "Family Structure, Institutions, and Growth: The Origins and Implications of Western Corporations," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 96(2), pages 308-312, May.
    16. Alexander W. Cappelen & Astri Drange Hole & Erik Ø Sørensen & Bertil Tungodden, 2007. "The Pluralism of Fairness Ideals: An Experimental Approach," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 97(3), pages 818-827, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Yuki, Kazuhiro, 2023. "Social Identity, Redistribution, and Development," MPRA Paper 115965, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    2. Francesco Berlingieri & Matija Kovacic & Elena Stepanova, 2025. "Trust behaviour of sexual minorities: Evidence from a large-scale trust game experiment," Working Papers 2025: 02, Department of Economics, University of Venice "Ca' Foscari".
    3. Zwetelina Iliewa & Elisabeth Kempf & Oliver Spalt, 2025. "Corporate Actions as Moral Issues," CESifo Working Paper Series 11854, CESifo.
    4. Kenju Kamei & Louis Putterman & Katy Tabero & Jean-Robert Tyran, 2024. "Civic Engagement as a Constraint on Corruption," Working Papers 2024-003, Brown University, Department of Economics.
    5. Voigt, Stefan & von Jacobi, Nadia, 2025. "Mapping Informal Institutions – a Global Dataset," ILE Working Paper Series 89, University of Hamburg, Institute of Law and Economics.
    6. Bietenbeck, Jan & Sunde, Uwe & Thiemann, Petra, 2025. "Recession experiences during early adulthood shape prosocial attitudes later in life," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 243(C).
    7. Roberto Ezcurra, 2024. "Kin networks and quality of government: a regional analysis," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 73(4), pages 2117-2142, December.
    8. Zwetelina Iliewa & Elisabeth Kempf & Oliver Spalt, 2025. "Corporate Actions as Moral Issues," CRC TR 224 Discussion Paper Series crctr224_2025_649v2, University of Bonn and University of Mannheim, Germany, revised Apr 2025.
    9. Apolte, Thomas, 2025. "Random walks into democracy and back: The case against causal explanations of democratization," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    10. Kramer, Berber & Porter, Maria & Wassie, Solomon Bizuayehu, 2025. "Basis Risk, Social Comparison, Perceptions of Fairness and Demand for Insurance: A Field Experiment in Ethiopia," 2025 AAEA & WAEA Joint Annual Meeting, July 27-29, 2025, Denver, CO 361093, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D12 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis
    • D64 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Altruism; Philanthropy; Intergenerational Transfers
    • D72 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
    • Z12 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Religion
    • Z13 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification

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