Trust and the Historical Emergence of Cadastres
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2025-07-03
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en
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This thesis investigates the role of generalized trust in the historical emergence of cadastres. I show that generalized trust is positively correlated with the historical emergence of cadastres. Countries that are more trusting developed more complete cadastres earlier. This finding is made possible through new historical data on cadastres, which is combined with cross-country data on generalized trust and other control variables. I use interannual temperature variability as an instrument for generalized trust to find some, but not fully conclusive, evidence that this correlation is a causal effect. Next to that, I find evidence that this correlation is heterogenous, and that the correlation is smaller or non-existent in countries where European colonial powers imposed extractive institutions. To explain the effect of generalized trust on the historical emergence of cadastres, I point to the mechanism where trust enables political coordination among society and the elite to establish institutions and solve the political commitment problem.
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Faculteit der Managementwetenschappen