Intergroup contact and nation building: Evidence from military service in Spain

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Caceres-Delpiano, Julio; De Moragas, Antoni-Italo; Facchini, Gabriel; Gonzalez, Ignacio
• 署名单位: Universidad Carlos III de Madrid; CUNEF Universidad; Autonomous University of Barcelona; American University
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF PUBLIC ECONOMICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0047-2727
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2021.104477
• 发表日期: 2021
• 关键词: Nation building; intergroup contact; military service

摘要

We study the long-term effects of intergroup contact on nation building by exploiting a national lottery that randomly allocated conscripts to different military areas across Spain. For men born in regions that feature a weak Spanish identity, we find that being assigned to military service in a different region substantially increases self-identification as Spanish, increases the likelihood of voting in national elections and reduces the probability of voting for a regionalist party. Moreover, in support of intergroup contact as the main mechanism behind these results, we find that movers are more likely than nonmovers to have friends from other regions. (c) 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.