Book Translations as Idea Flows: The Effects of the Collapse of Communism on the Diffusion of Knowledge

Motu Working Paper No. 12-05

53 Pages Posted: 17 May 2012

See all articles by Ran Abramitzky

Ran Abramitzky

Stanford University - Department of Economics

Isabelle Sin

Motu Economic and Public Policy Research

Multiple version iconThere are 3 versions of this paper

Date Written: May 16, 2012

Abstract

We use book translations as a new measure of international idea flows and study the effects of Communism’s collapse in Eastern Europe on these flows. Using novel data on 800,000 translations and difference-in-differences approaches, we show that while translations between Communist languages decreased by two thirds with the collapse, Western-to-Communist translations increased by a factor of five and quickly converged to Western levels. Convergence was more complete in more economically-useful fields such as the sciences, and was more complete in Satellite than in Soviet countries. These findings help us understand how institutions shape the international diffusion of knowledge.

Keywords: idea flows, book translations, institutions, institutional change, Communism's collapse

JEL Classification: N0, N70, N74, F02, F15, P20, P30, P51, P52

Suggested Citation

Abramitzky, Ran and Sin, Isabelle, Book Translations as Idea Flows: The Effects of the Collapse of Communism on the Diffusion of Knowledge (May 16, 2012). Motu Working Paper No. 12-05, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2061386 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2061386

Ran Abramitzky

Stanford University - Department of Economics ( email )

Stanford, CA 94305
United States

Isabelle Sin (Contact Author)

Motu Economic and Public Policy Research ( email )

Level 1, 93 Cuba Street
P.O. Box 24390
Wellington, 6142
New Zealand

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