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
There are 3 versions of this paper
Book Translations as Idea Flows: The Effects of the Collapse of Communism on the Diffusion of Knowledge
Book Translations as Idea Flows: The Effects of the Collapse of Communism on the Diffusion of Knowledge
Book Translations as Idea Flows: The Effects of the Collapse of Communism on the Diffusion of Knowledge
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: Suggested Citation