Do Natural Disasters Enhance Societal Trust?
利用面板数据研究自然灾害频率与社会信任的关系，发现频繁的自然灾害可能通过促进社会合作而增强信任，为灾害的社会溢出效应提供证据。
Summary In this article we investigate the relationship between disasters and societal trust. A growing body research suggests that factors such as income inequality, ethnic fractionalization and religious heritage are important determinants of social capital in general and trust in particular. We present new panel data evidence of another important determinant of trust – the frequency of natural disasters. Frequent naturally occurring events such as storms require (and provide opportunity for) societies to work closely together to meet their challenges. While natural disasters can have devastating human and economic impacts, a potential spillover benefit of greater disaster exposure may be a more tightly knit society.