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Ancestral Livelihoods and Moral Universalism: Evidence from Transhumant Pastoralist Societies

Author

Listed:
  • Sara Lowes

    (UC San Diego - University of California [San Diego] - UC - University of California)

  • Etienne Le Rossignol

    (CES - Centre d'économie de la Sorbonne - UP1 - Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, UP1 UFR02 - Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne - École d'économie de la Sorbonne - UP1 - Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, London Business School)

Abstract

Moral universalism, the extent to which individuals exhibit similar altruism and trust towards in-group and out-group members, varies widely across societies. We test the hypothesis from anthropology that the requirements of transhumant pastoralism – a livelihood in which populations seasonally migrate and herd livestock – made individuals highly interdependent and cohesive within groups but hostile to individuals beyond the radius of extended kin. Using global data, we find that historical reliance on transhumant pastoralism is strongly predictive of greater in-group relative to out-group trust. This result is consistent across countries, between residents of the same country, among second-generation migrants, and with an instrumental variable strategy. We find evidence that these results are specific to transhumant pastoralism. The effects are particularly pronounced when transhumant pastoralists interact with groups that rely on other forms of economic production and in areas that are prone to climate shocks and conflict. Finally, we explore the economic implications of limited moral universalism. We find that greater reliance on transhumant pastoralism is associated with less objective promotion criteria within firms and smaller firm size.

Suggested Citation

  • Sara Lowes & Etienne Le Rossignol, 2022. "Ancestral Livelihoods and Moral Universalism: Evidence from Transhumant Pastoralist Societies," Working Papers hal-04083398, HAL.
  • Handle: RePEc:hal:wpaper:hal-04083398
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    Cited by:

    1. Alexander W. Cappelen & Benjamin Enke & Bertil Tungodden, 2022. "Moral Universalism: Global Evidence," CESifo Working Paper Series 10110, CESifo.
    2. Valentín Figueroa & Vasiliki Fouka, 2023. "Structural Transformation and Value Change: The British Abolitionist Movement," CESifo Working Paper Series 10662, CESifo.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Transhumant pastoralism; Trust; Moral universalism; Kinship; Culture; Firms;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • N9 - Economic History - - Regional and Urban History
    • O1 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development
    • Z1 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics
    • Z10 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - General

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