Full Citation

Title: New Deal, New Patriots: How 1930s Government Spending Boosted Patriotism during WW II

Citation Type: Working Paper

Publication Year: 2022

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Abstract: We demonstrate an important complementarity between patriotism and public good provision. After 1933, the New Deal led to an unprecedented expansion of the US federal government’s role. Those who benefited from social spending were markedly more patriotic during WW II: they bought more war bonds, volunteered more and, as soldiers, won more medals. This pattern was new – WW I volunteering did not show the same geography of patriotism. We match military service records with the 1940 census to show that this pattern holds at the individual level. Using geographical variation, we exploit two instruments to suggest that the effect is causal: droughts and congressional committee representation predict more New Deal agricultural support, as well as bond buying, volunteering, and medals.

Url: http://brunocaprettini.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/patriotism.pdf

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Authors: Caprettini, Bruno; Voth, Hans-Joachim

Series Title: CEPR Discussion Papers

Publication Number: DP12807

Institution: Centre for Economic Policy Research

Pages: 1-82

Publisher Location: London, UK

Data Collections: IPUMS USA - Ancestry Full Count Data, IPUMS NHGIS

Topics: Labor Force and Occupational Structure, Other, Poverty and Welfare

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