RePEc: Research Papers in Economics · 10 citations · 24 references
Economic DevelopmentLawIncome DistributionEconomic HistoryUneven DevelopmentLabor Process StudiesLabour StudyFederal Labor LawPolitical EconomyEconomic AnalysisLand RedistributionIv StrategyEconomic InequalitySocial InequalityEconomicsPublic PolicyRussian SerfdomLabor Force TrendLabor EconomicsWorld Economic HistoryUrban EconomicsBusinessHuman Capital InvestmentLabor LawUnemployment
This paper examines the long-run consequences of Russian serfdom. We use novel data measuring the intensity of labor coercion at the district level in 1861. Our results show that a greater legacy of serfdom is associated with lower economic well-being today. We apply an IV strategy that exploits the transfer of serfs from monastic lands in 1764 to establish causality. Exploring mechanisms, we find a positive correlation between the earlier experience of serfdom and pre-Soviet urbanization and land inequality, with negative implications for human capital investment and agglomeration over the long-run.
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