1 option
The Effect of Superstition on Health: Evidence from the Taiwanese Ghost Month / Martin Halla, Chia-Lun Liu, Jin-Tan Liu.
- Format:
- Book
- Author/Creator:
- Halla, Martin.
- Series:
- Working Paper Series (National Bureau of Economic Research) no. w25474.
- NBER working paper series no. w25474
- Language:
- English
- Physical Description:
- 1 online resource: illustrations (black and white);
- Other Title:
- Effect of Superstition on Health
- Place of Publication:
- Cambridge, Mass. National Bureau of Economic Research 2019.
- Summary:
- Superstition is a widespread phenomenon. We empirically examine its impact on health-related behavior and health outcomes. We study the case of the Taiwanese Ghost Month. During this period, which is believed to increase the likelihood of bad outcomes, we observe substantial adaptions in health-related behavior. Our identification exploits idiosyncratic variation in the timing of the Ghost Month across Gregorian calendar years. Using high-quality administrative data, we document for the period of the Ghost Months reductions in mortality, hospital admissions, and births. While the effect on mortality is a quantum effect, the latter two effects reflect changes in the timing of events. These findings suggest potential benefits of including emotional and cultural factors in public health policy.
- Notes:
- Print version record
- January 2019.
The Penn Libraries is committed to describing library materials using current, accurate, and responsible language. If you discover outdated or inaccurate language, please fill out this feedback form to report it and suggest alternative language.