TY  - JOUR
AU  - Giuliano,Paola
AU  - Spilimbergo,Antonio
TI  - Growing Up in a Recession: Beliefs and the Macroeconomy
JF  - National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series
VL  - No. 15321
PY  - 2009
Y2  - September 2009
UR  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w15321
L1  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w15321.pdf
N1  - Author contact info:
Paola Giuliano
Anderson School of Management
UCLA
110 Westwood Plaza
C517 Entrepreneurs Hall
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1481
Tel: 310/206-6890
Fax: 310/825-4011
E-Mail: paola.giuliano@anderson.ucla.edu

Antonio Spilimbergo
International Monetary Fund
700 19th Street, N.W.
Washington, DC  20431
E-Mail: aspilimbergo@imf.org
AB  - Do generations growing up during recessions have different socio-economic beliefs than generations growing up in good times? We study the relationship between recessions and beliefs by matching macroeconomic shocks during early adulthood with self-reported answers from the General Social Survey. Using time and regional variations in macroeconomic conditions to identify the effect of recessions on beliefs, we show that individuals growing up during recessions tend to believe that  success in life depends more on luck than on effort, support more government redistribution, but are less confident in public  institutions. Moreover, we find that recessions have a long-lasting effect on individuals’ beliefs.
ER  -