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Moral Universalism: Global Evidence

Author

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  • Alexander W. Cappelen
  • Benjamin Enke
  • Bertil Tungodden

Abstract

This paper presents novel stylized facts about the global variation in universalism, leveraging nationally representative surveys across 60 countries (N=64,000). We find large variation in universalism within and across countries, which almost entirely reflects heterogeneity in people’s moral views regarding how to treat different types of relationships. Universalism is strongly predictive of political views, civic engagement, and the radius of trust, and varies with the economic, political and religious organization of societies. We provide tentative evidence that experience with democracy makes people more universalist. Overall, our results suggests that moral universalism shapes and is shaped by politico-economic outcomes across the globe.

Suggested Citation

  • Alexander W. Cappelen & Benjamin Enke & Bertil Tungodden, 2022. "Moral Universalism: Global Evidence," CESifo Working Paper Series 10110, CESifo.
    • Handle: RePEc:ces:ceswps:_10110
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    Cited by:

    1. Michel Andre Maréchal & Alain Cohn & Jeffrey Yusof & Raymond Fisman & Michel André Maréchal, 2023. "Whose Preferences Matter for Redistribution: Cross-Country Evidence," CESifo Working Paper Series 10846, CESifo.
    2. Kammas, Pantelis & Sarantides, Vassilis, 2024. "Historical pathogen prevalence and the radius of trust," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 162(C).
    3. Jetter, Michael, 2024. "On the Post-Enlightenment Evolution of Moral Universalism," IZA Discussion Papers 16947, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    moral universalism; political economy; culture;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D01 - Microeconomics - - General - - - Microeconomic Behavior: Underlying Principles

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