. It argues that there is a missing component in the geography versus institutions debate, namely the role of culture and … supplemented by the work of social scientists in other disciplines on culture and cultural evolution. By examining the direct … effects of geography on standards of living as well as its indirect effects via culture and institutions, a case is made to …

the quasi-natural experiment generated by the radical Napoleonic institutional reforms and the deeply rooted cultural … stronger ties to French culture exhibit a more effective transplant even when controlling for institutional proximity. Our …