National Culture and Macroprudential Policy Actions : An International Investigation

Using an international sample covering more than 50 countries over 20 years, we assess the impact of national culture on macroprudential policy actions. The empirical findings indicate that macroprudential policies are tighter in more uncertainty-avoiding and long-term-oriented countries, whereas prudential policies tend to be more relaxed in societies that value power distance, individualism, or masculinity. The positive effect of uncertainty avoidance on macroprudential policy tightness is enhanced in countries with more independent, multiple, or less forbearing supervisory agencies