IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/eecrev/v175y2025ics0014292125000522.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Mining and mistrust in government

Author

Listed:
  • Mavisakalyan, Astghik
  • Minasyan, Anna

Abstract

Natural resource extraction can undermine institutions through its negative impact on corruption and public goods provision, potentially affecting individual trust in local government. We examine this conjecture by combining geo-referenced survey data with spatial data on mine locations across 28 post-communist countries of Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. Using information on the development status of mineral reserves, we employ a cross-sectional difference-in-differences approach comparing individuals living near active versus not-yet-active mines. Our findings reveal a robust negative relationship between mining production and trust in local government. Analysis of mechanisms indicates that corruption perceptions and practices primarily drive this relationship. While examining alternative non-institutional channels, we find that environmental concerns may also contribute to government mistrust in specific contexts.

Suggested Citation

  • Mavisakalyan, Astghik & Minasyan, Anna, 2025. "Mining and mistrust in government," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 175(C).
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:eecrev:v:175:y:2025:i:c:s0014292125000522
    DOI: 10.1016/j.euroecorev.2025.105002
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0014292125000522
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.euroecorev.2025.105002?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to look for a different version below or search for a different version of it.

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Lei, Yu-Hsiang & Michaels, Guy, 2014. "Do giant oilfield discoveries fuel internal armed conflicts?," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 139-157.
    2. Bargain, Olivier & Aminjonov, Ulugbek, 2020. "Trust and compliance to public health policies in times of COVID-19," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 192(C).
    3. Zak, Paul J & Knack, Stephen, 2001. "Trust and Growth," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 111(470), pages 295-321, April.
    4. Remi Bazillier & Victoire Girard, 2020. "The gold digger and the machine. Evidence on the distributive effect of the artisanal and industrial gold rushes in Burkina Faso," Post-Print hal-03533228, HAL.
    5. Bhattacharyya, Sambit & Hodler, Roland, 2010. "Natural resources, democracy and corruption," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 54(4), pages 608-621, May.
    6. Carl Henrik Knutsen & Andreas Kotsadam & Eivind Hammersmark Olsen & Tore Wig, 2017. "Mining and Local Corruption in Africa," American Journal of Political Science, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 61(2), pages 320-334, April.
    7. Fernanda Brollo & Tommaso Nannicini & Roberto Perotti & Guido Tabellini, 2013. "The Political Resource Curse," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 103(5), pages 1759-1796, August.
    8. Timothy Besley & Torsten Persson, 2010. "State Capacity, Conflict, and Development," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 78(1), pages 1-34, January.
    9. Stephen Knack & Philip Keefer, 1997. "Does Social Capital Have an Economic Payoff? A Cross-Country Investigation," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 112(4), pages 1251-1288.
    10. Guido Tabellini, 2008. "Presidential Address Institutions and Culture," Journal of the European Economic Association, MIT Press, vol. 6(2-3), pages 255-294, 04-05.
    11. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/1mhdgtufmp9u2blp3nkko6i6f3 is not listed on IDEAS
    12. Yann Algan & Pierre Cahuc & Andrei Shleifer, 2013. "Teaching Practices and Social Capital," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 5(3), pages 189-210, July.
    13. Abel Brodeur & Idaliya Grigoryeva & Lamis Kattan, 2021. "Stay-at-home orders, social distancing, and trust," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 34(4), pages 1321-1354, October.
    14. Ernst Fehr, 2009. "On The Economics and Biology of Trust," Journal of the European Economic Association, MIT Press, vol. 7(2-3), pages 235-266, 04-05.
    15. Guriev, Sergei & Melnikov, Nikita, 2018. "Happiness convergence in transition countries," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 46(3), pages 683-707.
    16. Konte, Maty & Vincent, Rose Camille, 2021. "Mining and quality of public services: The role of local governance and decentralization," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    17. Jeffrey D. Sachs & Andrew M. Warner, 1995. "Natural Resource Abundance and Economic Growth," NBER Working Papers 5398, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    18. Guido Tabellini, 2010. "Culture and Institutions: Economic Development in the Regions of Europe," Journal of the European Economic Association, European Economic Association, vol. 8(4), pages 677-716, June.
    19. Guriev, Sergei & Melnikov, Nikita, 2018. "Happiness convergence in transition countries," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 46(3), pages 683-707.
    20. Benjamin A. Olken, 2009. "Do Television and Radio Destroy Social Capital? Evidence from Indonesian Villages," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 1(4), pages 1-33, October.
    21. Pelle Ahlerup & Thushyanthan Baskaran & Arne Bigsten, 2020. "Gold Mining and Education: A Long-run Resource Curse in Africa?," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 56(9), pages 1745-1762, July.
    22. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/4srj73kg79978qkvocpskj1tvb is not listed on IDEAS
    23. Besley, Timothy & Reynal-Querol, Marta, 2014. "The Legacy of Historical Conflict: Evidence from Africa," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 108(2), pages 319-336, May.
    24. Elissaios Papyrakis, 2017. "The Resource Curse - What Have We Learned from Two Decades of Intensive Research: Introduction to the Special Issue," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 53(2), pages 175-185, February.
    25. Frederick van der Ploeg, 2011. "Natural Resources: Curse or Blessing?," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 49(2), pages 366-420, June.
    26. Frederick Van Der Ploeg & Steven Poelhekke, 2017. "The Impact of Natural Resources: Survey of Recent Quantitative Evidence," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 53(2), pages 205-216, February.
    27. Bazillier, Remi & Girard, Victoire, 2020. "The gold digger and the machine. Evidence on the distributive effect of the artisanal and industrial gold rushes in Burkina Faso," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 143(C).
    28. Vicente, Pedro C., 2010. "Does oil corrupt? Evidence from a natural experiment in West Africa," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(1), pages 28-38, May.
    29. Aksoy, Cevat Giray & Tumen, Semih, 2021. "Local Governance Quality and the Environmental Cost of Forced Migration," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 149(C).
    30. BenYishay, Ariel & Grosjean, Pauline, 2014. "Initial endowments and economic reform in 27 post-socialist countries," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 42(4), pages 892-906.
    31. Kevin K. Tsui, 2011. "More Oil, Less Democracy: Evidence from Worldwide Crude Oil Discoveries," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 121(551), pages 89-115, March.
    32. Mavisakalyan, Astghik & Otrachshenko, Vladimir & Popova, Olga, 2021. "Can bribery buy health? Evidence from post-communist countries," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(4), pages 991-1007.
    33. Gylfason, Thorvaldur, 2001. "Natural resources, education, and economic development," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 45(4-6), pages 847-859, May.
    34. Sascha O. Becker & Katrin Boeckh & Christa Hainz & Ludger Woessmann, 2016. "The Empire Is Dead, Long Live the Empire! Long‐Run Persistence of Trust and Corruption in the Bureaucracy," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 126(590), pages 40-74, February.
    35. Nathan Nunn & Leonard Wantchekon, 2011. "The Slave Trade and the Origins of Mistrust in Africa," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 101(7), pages 3221-3252, December.
    36. Nikolova, Milena & Popova, Olga & Otrachshenko, Vladimir, 2022. "Stalin and the origins of mistrust," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 208(C).
    37. Pauline Grosjean, 2014. "Conflict and Social and Political Preferences: Evidence from World War II and Civil Conflict in 35 European Countries," Comparative Economic Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Association for Comparative Economic Studies, vol. 56(3), pages 424-451, September.
    38. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/33o86cn6qp83dot08iir97915s is not listed on IDEAS
    39. Robinson, James A. & Torvik, Ragnar & Verdier, Thierry, 2006. "Political foundations of the resource curse," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 79(2), pages 447-468, April.
    40. Katharina Wick & Erwin Bulte, 2009. "The Curse of Natural Resources," Annual Review of Resource Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 1(1), pages 139-156, September.
    41. Kolstad, Ivar & Wiig, Arne, 2012. "Testing The Pearl Hypothesis: Natural resources and trust," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(3), pages 358-367.
    42. von der Goltz, Jan & Barnwal, Prabhat, 2019. "Mines: The local wealth and health effects of mineral mining in developing countries," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 139(C), pages 1-16.
    43. Pauline Grosjean, 2011. "The Weight of History on European Cultural Integration: A Gravity Approach," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 101(3), pages 504-508, May.
    44. Ching-Hsing Wang, 2016. "Government Performance, Corruption, and Political Trust in East Asia," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 97(2), pages 211-231, June.
    45. Mavisakalyan, Astghik & Meinecke, Juergen, 2016. "The labor market return to academic fraud," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 82(C), pages 212-230.
    46. Kotsadam, Andreas & Tolonen, Anja, 2016. "African Mining, Gender, and Local Employment," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 325-339.
    47. John Ishiyama & Melissa Martinez & Melda Ozsut, 2018. "Do “Resource‐Cursed States” Have Lower Levels of Social and Institutional Trust? Evidence from Africa and Latin America," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 99(3), pages 872-894, September.
    48. Thomas Dohmen & Armin Falk & David Huffman & Uwe Sunde, 2012. "The Intergenerational Transmission of Risk and Trust Attitudes," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 79(2), pages 645-677.
    49. Mr. Carlos A Leite & Jens Weidmann, 1999. "Does Mother Nature Corrupt? Natural Resources, Corruption, and Economic Growth," IMF Working Papers 1999/085, International Monetary Fund.
    50. Arezki, Rabah & Brückner, Markus, 2011. "Oil rents, corruption, and state stability: Evidence from panel data regressions," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 55(7), pages 955-963.
    51. Algan, Yann & Cahuc, Pierre, 2014. "Trust, Growth, and Well-Being: New Evidence and Policy Implications," Handbook of Economic Growth, in: Philippe Aghion & Steven Durlauf (ed.), Handbook of Economic Growth, edition 1, volume 2, chapter 2, pages 49-120, Elsevier.
    52. Michael Alexeev & Robert Conrad, 2009. "The Elusive Curse of Oil," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 91(3), pages 586-598, August.
    53. Francesco Caselli & Tom Cunningham, 2009. "Leader behaviour and the natural resource curse," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 61(4), pages 628-650, October.
    54. Horváth, Roman & Zeynalov, Ayaz, 2016. "Natural resources, manufacturing and institutions in post-Soviet countries," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 141-148.
    55. Irena Grosfeld & Alexander Rodnyansky & Ekaterina Zhuravskaya, 2013. "Persistent Antimarket Culture: A Legacy of the Pale of Settlement after the Holocaust," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 5(3), pages 189-226, August.
    56. Dominic P. Parker & Jeremy D. Foltz & David Elsea, 2016. "Unintended Consequences of Sanctions for Human Rights: Conflict Minerals and Infant Mortality," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 59(4), pages 731-774.
    57. Caselli, Francesco & Cunningham, Tom, 2009. "Leader behavior and the natural resource curse," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 25430, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    58. Danila Serra, 2006. "Empirical determinants of corruption: A sensitivity analysis," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 126(1), pages 225-256, January.
    59. repec:spo:wpmain:info:hdl:2441/1mhdgtufmp9u2blp3nkko6i6f3 is not listed on IDEAS
    60. Victoire Girard & Nicolas Berman & Mathieu Couttenier, 2020. "Natural resources and the salience of ethnic identities," NOVAFRICA Working Paper Series wp2007, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Nova School of Business and Economics, NOVAFRICA.
    61. Germana Corrado, 2020. "Institutional quality and access to financial services: evidence from European transition economies," Journal of Economic Studies, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 47(6), pages 1363-1376, July.
    62. Matthias Busse & Steffen Gröning, 2013. "The resource curse revisited: governance and natural resources," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 154(1), pages 1-20, January.
    63. Alessandra Cassar & Pauline Grosjean & Sam Whitt, 2013. "Legacies of violence: trust and market development," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 18(3), pages 285-318, September.
    64. repec:spo:wpmain:info:hdl:2441/33o86cn6qp83dot08iir97915s is not listed on IDEAS
    65. Yann Algan & Pierre Cahuc & Andrei Shleifer, 2013. "Teaching Practices and Social Capital," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 5(3), pages 189-210, July.
    66. Sachs, Jeffrey D. & Warner, Andrew M., 2001. "The curse of natural resources," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 45(4-6), pages 827-838, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Konte, Maty & Vincent, Rose Camille, 2021. "Mining and quality of public services: The role of local governance and decentralization," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    2. Eoin McGuirk, 2013. "The illusory leader: natural resources, taxation and accountability," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 154(3), pages 285-313, March.
    3. Asiamah, Oliver & Agyei, Samuel Kwaku & Bossman, Ahmed & Agyei, Ellen Animah & Asucam, Joseph & Arku-Asare, Michael, 2022. "Natural resource dependence and institutional quality: Evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    4. Nemera Gebeyehu Mamo, 2018. "Essays on natural resources in Africa: local economic development, multi-ethnic coalitions and armed conflict," Economics PhD Theses 0518, Department of Economics, University of Sussex Business School.
    5. Cappelen, Alexander W. & Fjeldstad, Odd-Helge & Mmari, Donald & Sjursen, Ingrid Hoem & Tungodden, Bertil, 2021. "Understanding the resource curse: A large-scale experiment on corruption in Tanzania," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 183(C), pages 129-157.
    6. Waqar Wadho & Sadia Hussain, 2023. "Ethnic diversity, concentration of political power and the curse of natural resources," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 40(1), pages 113-137, April.
    7. Ruba Aljarallah, 2021. "An Analysis of the Impact of Rents from Non-renewable Natural Resources and Changes in Human Capital on Institutional Quality: A Case Study of Kuwait," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 11(5), pages 224-234.
    8. Alssadek, Marwan & Benhin, James, 2023. "Natural resource curse: A literature survey and comparative assessment of regional groupings of oil-rich countries," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 84(C).
    9. Ruba A. Aljarallah & Andrew Angus, 2020. "Dilemma of Natural Resource Abundance: A Case Study of Kuwait," SAGE Open, , vol. 10(1), pages 21582440198, January.
    10. van Krevel, Charan & Peters, Marlou, 2024. "How natural resource rents, exports, and government resource revenues determine Genuine Savings: Causal evidence from oil, gas, and coal," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 181(C).
    11. Kodjovi M. Eklou, 2020. "A Leadership Curse? Oil Price Shocks and the Selection of National Leaders," Cahiers de recherche 20-05, Departement d'économique de l'École de gestion à l'Université de Sherbrooke.
    12. Badeeb, Ramez Abubakr & Lean, Hooi Hooi & Clark, Jeremy, 2017. "The evolution of the natural resource curse thesis: A critical literature survey," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 123-134.
    13. Maldonado, Stanislao, 2014. "The Non-Monotonic Political Effects of Resource Booms," MPRA Paper 85649, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 18 Dec 2017.
    14. Smith, Brock, 2015. "The resource curse exorcised: Evidence from a panel of countries," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 116(C), pages 57-73.
    15. Tsopmo, Pierre Christian & Mbouombouo Vessah, Salim Ahmed & Soumtang Bime, Valentine & Mondjeli Mwa Ndjokou, Itchoko Motande, 2024. "Do African countries avoid the curse of natural resources on social cohesion?," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    16. Mamo, Nemera & Bhattacharyya, Sambit & Moradi, Alexander, 2019. "Intensive and extensive margins of mining and development: Evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 139(C), pages 28-49.
    17. Carl Henrik Knutsen & Andreas Kotsadam & Eivind Hammersmark Olsen & Tore Wig, 2017. "Mining and Local Corruption in Africa," American Journal of Political Science, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 61(2), pages 320-334, April.
    18. James, Alexander & Rivera, Nathaly M., 2022. "Oil, politics, and “Corrupt Bastards”," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 111(C).
    19. Algan, Yann & Cahuc, Pierre, 2014. "Trust, Growth, and Well-Being: New Evidence and Policy Implications," Handbook of Economic Growth, in: Philippe Aghion & Steven Durlauf (ed.), Handbook of Economic Growth, edition 1, volume 2, chapter 2, pages 49-120, Elsevier.
    20. Keller, Michael, 2022. "Oil revenues vs domestic taxation: Deeper insights into the crowding-out effect," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Natural resources; Mining; Trust; Institutions; Corruption; Post-communist countries;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D72 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
    • L72 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Primary Products and Construction - - - Mining, Extraction, and Refining: Other Nonrenewable Resources
    • O13 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Agriculture; Natural Resources; Environment; Other Primary Products
    • P28 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Socialist and Transition Economies - - - Natural Resources; Environment
    • Q32 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Nonrenewable Resources and Conservation - - - Exhaustible Resources and Economic Development

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:eecrev:v:175:y:2025:i:c:s0014292125000522. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/eer .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.