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Human Capital and the Supply of Religion

Author

Listed:
  • Joseph Engelberg

    (University of California at San Diego)

  • Raymond Fisman

    (Columbia University)

  • Jay C. Hartzell

    (University of Texas, Austin)

  • Christopher A. Parsons

    (University of California at San Diego)

Abstract

We study the role of labor inputs in religious attendance using data on Oklahoma Methodist congregations from 1961 to 2003. Pastors play a significant role in church growth: replacing a 25th percentile pastor with a 75th percentile one increases annual attendance growth by 3%. A pastor’s performance in his or her first church (largely the result of random assignment) predicts future performance, suggesting a causal effect of pastors on growth. The deployment of pastors by the church indicates efficient use of labor: low-performing pastors are more likely to be rotated or exit the sample, and high-performing pastors are moved to larger congregations.

Suggested Citation

  • Joseph Engelberg & Raymond Fisman & Jay C. Hartzell & Christopher A. Parsons, 2016. "Human Capital and the Supply of Religion," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 98(3), pages 415-427, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:tpr:restat:v:98:y:2016:i:3:p:415-427
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    File URL: http://www.mitpressjournals.org/doi/pdf/10.1162/REST_a_00582
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Chemin, Matthieu, 2021. "Does appointing team leaders and shaping leadership styles increase effort? Evidence from a field experiment," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 186(C), pages 12-32.
    2. Arold, W. Benjamin & Woessmann, Ludger & Zierow, Larissa, 2022. "Can Schools Change Religious Attitudes? Evidence from German State Reforms of Compulsory Religious Education," IZA Discussion Papers 14989, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    3. Laeven, Luc & Popov, Alexander & Sievert, Clara, 2024. "Is religion an inferior good? Evidence from fluctuations in housing wealth," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 217(C), pages 705-725.
    4. Gianandrea Lanzara & Sara Lazzaroni & Paolo Masella & Mara P. Squicciarini, 2023. "Do Bishops Matter for Politics? Evidence From Italy," Working Papers wp1179, Dipartimento Scienze Economiche, Universita' di Bologna.
    5. Shu Han & S. Abraham Ravid, 2020. "Star Turnover and the Value of Human Capital—Evidence from Broadway Shows," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 66(2), pages 958-978, February.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • Z12 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Religion

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    1. Human Capital and the Supply of Religion (REStat 2016) in ReplicationWiki

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