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Is culture a determinant of financial development?

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  • Nabamita Dutta
  • Deepraj Mukherjee

Abstract

This article investigates the missing link in the literature -- whether informal institutions, or what is known as culture, can affect the level of financial development for a country? Our hypothesis stresses that the cultural dimensions of a country can have an impact on its financial set-up. We consider multiple dimensions of culture, identified in the literature by Tabellini (2008), to test our hypothesis. As culture evolves in the form of greater trust, control and other traits, individuals' attitudes towards financial market change, and they engage in greater financial transactions. This, in turn, leads to better financial development. Using quantile estimation technique for a cross section of 90 countries, we find that culture significantly influences the level of financial development. To ensure the robustness of our findings we use Hofstede's cultural dimension -- ‘Uncertainty Avoidance Index’ (UAI) -- as an alternative measure for culture. Our results hold for multiple measures of financial development.

Suggested Citation

  • Nabamita Dutta & Deepraj Mukherjee, 2012. "Is culture a determinant of financial development?," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(6), pages 585-590, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:apeclt:v:19:y:2012:i:6:p:585-590
    DOI: 10.1080/13504851.2011.589800
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Stulz, Rene M. & Williamson, Rohan, 2003. "Culture, openness, and finance," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 70(3), pages 313-349, December.
    2. repec:wvu:wpaper:09-05 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Rafael La Porta & Florencio Lopez-de-Silanes & Andrei Shleifer & Robert W. Vishny, 1998. "Law and Finance," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 106(6), pages 1113-1155, December.
    4. World Bank, 2008. "World Development Indicators 2008," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 11855, December.
    5. Luigi Guiso & Paola Sapienza & Luigi Zingales, 2006. "Does Culture Affect Economic Outcomes?," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 20(2), pages 23-48, Spring.
    6. 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.
    7. Koenker, Roger W & Bassett, Gilbert, Jr, 1978. "Regression Quantiles," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 46(1), pages 33-50, January.
    8. World Bank, 2008. "World Development Indicators 2008," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 28241, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. Md Deluair Hossen, 2023. "Financing Costs, Per-Shipment Costs and Shipping Frequency: Firm-Level Evidence from Bangladesh," Papers 2303.04223, arXiv.org.
    2. Huy Tiet Pham & Christopher Gan & Baiding Hu, 2022. "Causality between Financial Development and Foreign Direct Investment in Asian Developing Countries," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 15(5), pages 1-26, April.
    3. Muhammad Asif Khan & Hossam Haddad & Mahmoud Odeh & Ahsanuddin Haider & Mohammed Arshad Khan, 2022. "Institutions, Culture, or Interaction: What Determines the Financial Market Development in Emerging Markets?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-23, November.
    4. Olufemi Adewale Aluko & Oladapo Fapetu & Julius Oyebanji Ibitoye, 2021. "Do Openness and Democracy Deepen Banking Sector in Sub-Saharan Africa?," Global Business Review, International Management Institute, vol. 22(2), pages 279-289, April.
    5. Christian Lambert NGUENA & Roger TSAFACK NANFOSSO, 2014. "Macroeconomic Factors and Dynamics of Financial Deepening: An empirical Investigation applied to the CEMAC Sub-region," Research Africa Network Working Papers 14/015, Research Africa Network (RAN).
    6. Mukherjee Deepraj & Dutta Nabamita, 2013. "Do Political Institutions and Culture Jointly Matter for Financial Development? A Cross-Country Panel Investigation," Global Economy Journal, De Gruyter, vol. 13(2), pages 203-232, June.
    7. Christian Lambert Nguena & Roger Tsafack Nanfosso, 2013. "Financial Deepening Dynamics and Implication for Financial Policy Coordination in a Monetary Union: the case of WAEMU," AAYE Policy Research Working Paper Series 13_005, Association of African Young Economists, revised Nov 2013.
    8. Yilmaz Bayar & Djula Borozan & Marius Dan Gavriletea, 2021. "Banking sector stability and economic growth in post‐transition European Union countries," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 26(1), pages 949-961, January.
    9. Emmanuel Amissah & Katarzyna Świerczyńska, 2021. "Is Religion a Determinant of Financial Development?," International Advances in Economic Research, Springer;International Atlantic Economic Society, vol. 27(3), pages 233-247, August.
    10. Christian Lambert Nguena & Roger Tsafack Nanfosso, 2013. "What Drives and Limits Financial Deepening Dynamics? Fresh Empirical-based Policy Lessons for African Sub-Regions," AAYE Policy Research Working Paper Series 13_003, Association of African Young Economists, revised Nov 2013.
    11. Isaac Koomson & Michael Danquah & Edward Martey, 2023. "Ethnic diversity and financial inclusion in post-apartheid South Africa," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2023-119, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    12. Olufemi Adewale Aluko & Bolanle Aminah Azeez, 2019. "Effectiveness of legal institutions in stock market development in sub-Saharan Africa," Economic Change and Restructuring, Springer, vol. 52(4), pages 439-451, November.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • G1 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets
    • Z1 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics
    • O17 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Formal and Informal Sectors; Shadow Economy; Institutional Arrangements

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