Judicial Ingroup Bias in the Shadow of Terrorism

S-Tier
Journal: Quarterly Journal of Economics
Year: 2011
Volume: 126
Issue: 3
Pages: 1447-1484

Score contribution per author:

4.022 = (α=2.01 / 2 authors) × 4.0x S-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

We study ingroup bias--the preferential treatment of members of one's group--in naturally occurring data, where economically significant allocation decisions are made under a strong non-discriminatory norm. Data come from Israeli small claims courts during 2000--2004, where the assignment of a case to an Arab or Jewish judge is effectively random. We find robust evidence for judicial ingroup bias. Furthermore, this bias is strongly associated with terrorism intensity in the vicinity of the court in the year preceding the ruling. The results are consistent with theory and lab evidence according to which salience of group membership enhances social identification. Copyright 2011, Oxford University Press.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:oup:qjecon:v:126:y:2011:i:3:p:1447-1484
Journal Field
General
Author Count
2
Added to Database
2026-01-29