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The Impact of Socioeconomic and Cultural Differences on Online Trade

NBER Working Paper No. w26197
2019
  • 0
    Citations
  • 414
    Usage
  • 1
    Captures
  • 0
    Mentions
  • 0
    Social Media
Metric Options:   Counts1 Year3 Year

Metrics Details

  • Usage
    414
    • Abstract Views
      400
    • Downloads
      14
  • Captures
    1
    • Readers
      1
      • SSRN
        1

Paper Description

We use U.S. eBay data to investigate how trade is influenced by differences in socioeconomic characteristics, tastes, and trust. States’ similarity in cultural characteristics (ethnicity, religious affiliations, and political behavior) is predictive of online trade; cultural similarity similarly predicts trade between finer (three-digit zip code) geographies. The culture-trade relationship is mediated in part by consumers’ tastes, and is stronger for transactions with sellers who lack extensive reputations or certification, suggesting that consumers infer seller trustworthiness from cultural similarity. There is no correlation between cultural similarity and buyer satisfaction, consistent with perceived differences in trustworthiness not being validated by actual transactions.

Bibliographic Details

Daniel W. Elfenbein; Raymond J. Fisman; Brian McManus

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