We test the hypothesis whether a specific aspect of culture - trust in others - affects shareholder voting behavior by … in high-trust countries while the percentage of votes in support of management proposals is higher. Shocks to trust and … monitoring when trust is high. …

We test the hypothesis that a specific aspect of culture - trust in others - affects shareholder voting behavior as it … shareholder meetings is lower in high-trust countries while the percentage of votes in support of management is higher. Shocks to … trust and IV regressions support this result. We also find that shareholder voting is more valuable in low-trust countries …

We show that in countries with more societal trust shareholders cast fewer votes at shareholder meetings and are more … supportive of management proposals. This result is confirmed by shocks to trust and instrumental variables. It also holds at the … participation and less dissent voting relate less negatively to future firm performance in high-trust countries, suggesting that …

We show that in countries with more societal trust shareholders cast fewer votes at shareholder meetings and are more … performance in high-trust countries, suggesting that managers do not exploit greater discretion when trust is high. We also find a … negative relation between trust and bond spreads. Our evidence supports theory arguing that trust substitutes for monitoring …