This paper presents an application of the hedonic approach to measure the monetary price of social relations. We use micro data for housing and labor markets in the 103 Italian province capitals to estimate the price of relational amenities and construct monetary indices of quality of relational...

In this paper we analyze a two-sector growth model in which the utility function is not additively separable in consumption and “quality leisure time”. Differently from the main body of theoretical literature on quality leisure, we assume that the “productivity” of leisure is not...

This paper tests the relationship between time preferences and crime rates as posited by Davis (1988), whose theoretical analysis suggests that individuals’ attitude towards the future significantly affects their propensity to commit crime. Our empirical analysis is based on a panel of Italian...

This paper investigates the contribution of property rights (land title ownership) to happiness in Brazil by analyzing the household response to an exogenous change in formal ownership status. It uses a quasi-experimental design to analyze a unique dataset based on Papel Passado, a Brazilian...

Superstitious beliefs affect economic activity and may have noticeable economic impacts. In China, numbers often convey certain superstitious meanings. Retailers in China manipulate digital patterns on price tags to fit consumers’ superstitious preferences. In this paper, I analyze such...

This study presents evidence about relations between national cultural dimensions, socioeconomic development and governance quality. Relations between Hofstede's dimensions, Schwartz cultural values, Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI) and UNPD Human Development Index (HDI) were analysed by...

Given the increasingly prominent role the Internet plays in people's daily life, understanding its influence on individual well-being is crucial. Internet use yields direct utility and economic returns that may increase life satisfaction. But the Internet might also have detrimental effects...

A series of studies connect social trust to economic growth. In this paper, we explore the connection between trust and a broader measure of development, the UN Human Development Index. We find that trust is significantly associated with faster human development in the 1980–2005 period. The...

The objective of the first part of this study is to confirm Alexis de Tocqueville's assertion that “Even the most favorable geographic locations and the best laws cannot maintain a constitution in despite of mores.” A synthetic index of progressive social values taken from the World Values...

This article refines the theory of economic agents’ motivations beyond the alternative between egoistic self-interest and a generic altruism. It addresses the potential weakness of ‘altruism’ theories that the number of ‘others’ claiming empathy and care is potentially infinite. It...