Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/205151 
more recent Version: 
Year of Publication: 
2019
Series/Report no.: 
IWH Discussion Papers No. 21/2019
Publisher: 
Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung Halle (IWH), Halle (Saale)
Abstract: 
This paper investigates whether cultural norms shaped by religion drive consumer decisions after a corporate scandal. We exploit the unexpected notice of violation by the US Environmental Protection Agency in September 2015, accusing the car producer Volkswagen (VW) to have used software to manipulate car emission values during test phases. Using a difference-in-difference model, we show that new registrations of VW (diesel) cars decline significantly in German counties with a high share of Protestants following the VW scandal. Our results suggest that the enforcement culture rooted in Protestantism affects consumer decisions and penalises corporate fraud.
Subjects: 
religion
corporate scandal
consumer choice
climate change
JEL: 
D12
O30
Q50
Z12
Persistent Identifier of the first edition: 
Additional Information: 
A revised version of this paper has been published as Hasan, Iftekhar; Noth, Felix; Tonzer, Lena: Cultural Norms and Corporate Fraud: Evidence from the Volkswagen Scandal. IWH Discussion Paper 24/2020. Halle (Saale) 2020: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/226484
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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