Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/191435 
Year of Publication: 
2018
Series/Report no.: 
CESifo Working Paper No. 7410
Publisher: 
Center for Economic Studies and ifo Institute (CESifo), Munich
Abstract: 
The quasi-exogenous division of the French regions Alsace and Lorraine after the Franco-Prussian War allows us to provide evidence about group identity formation within historically homogeneous regions. Using several measures of stated and revealed preferences spanning over half a century, we show that being exposed to occupation and repression for many decades caused a persistently stronger regional identity. The geographical RDD results are robust across all specifications. We document two mechanisms using data on regional newspapers and regionalist parties. The differences are strongest for the first two age cohorts after WWII and associated with preferences for more regional decision-making.
Subjects: 
group identity
regional identity
identity formation
persistence of preferences
homogenization policies
assimilation
Alsace-Lorraine
JEL: 
D91
H70
N40
Z19
Document Type: 
Working Paper
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