Crime-related Exposure to Violence and Social Preferences: Experimental Evidence from Bogotá

We study the effects of psychological trauma and negative economic shocks on pro-social behavior in victims of violence in Colombia’s capital. Trauma positively affects pro-sociality in a first experiment, with a (randomly administered) recall of fearful situations having differential effects on people highly or lowly exposed to violence. This effect replicates in a second experiment, where both trauma and economic shock are found to induce pro-social behavior. Participants significantly favor same-district residents in the first experiment but not in the second. We fail to find significant support for various mechanisms posited to mediate the effect of trauma on pro-sociality.

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