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The Power of Religion

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  • Bentzen, Jeanet
  • Gokmen, Gunes

Abstract

Why does religion play a central role in some societies? Rulers have historically used religion to legitimize their power, which incentivized them to embed religion into institutions. This institutionalization of religion thus may explain why religion persists despite modernization. Using data across 1265 premodern societies and 176 countries, we provide evidence supporting divine legitimization and the resulting institutionalization of religion. For identification, we exploit exogenous variation in the incentives to employ religion for power purposes. We document two implications: countries that relied more on divine legitimization are more autocratic today and their populace more religious.

Suggested Citation

  • Bentzen, Jeanet & Gokmen, Gunes, 2020. "The Power of Religion," CEPR Discussion Papers 14706, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    • Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:14706
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    Cited by:

    1. Valencia Caicedo, Felipe & Dohmen, Thomas & Pondorfer, Andreas, 2023. "Religion and cooperation across the globe," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 215(C), pages 479-489.
    2. Yugang He, 2024. "Artificial intelligence and socioeconomic forces: transforming the landscape of religion," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 11(1), pages 1-10, December.
    3. Abdelsalam, Omneya & Chantziaras, Antonios & Ibrahim, Masud & Omoteso, Kamil, 2021. "The impact of religiosity on earnings quality: International evidence from the banking sector," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 53(6).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Persistence of religion; Institutionalization of religion; Religious laws; Religion; Religious legitimization; Divine legitimization; Stratification; High gods; Democracy; Religiosity;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • O1 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development
    • P48 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Other Economic Systems - - - Legal Institutions; Property Rights; Natural Resources; Energy; Environment; Regional Studies
    • Z12 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Religion
    • Z13 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification

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