Putnam (1993) argues that (i) central and northern Italy has developed faster than southern Italy because the former is better endowed with social capital; and (ii) that the endowments of social capital across Italy have been highly persistent over the centuries. This paper provides an empirical investigation of Putnam’s case. To evaluate the relevance of social capital we present a test based on worker productivity, entrepreneurship, and female labour market participation. Using as instruments regional differences in civic involvement in the late nineteenth century and local systems of government in the middle ages, we show that social capital does have economic effects.
Published in 2005 in: Economic Notes. Monte dei Paschi di Siena, v. 34, 1, pp. 85-112
Published in 2010 in: Journal of Regional Science, v. 50, 4, pp. 833-857
