Respect, responsibility, and production

We examine the impact of the values respect for others and responsibility on productivity and the accumulation of physical and human capital for a sample of 58 countries. We find that these two core values are important and that their impact is substantial. Respect for others works primarily through productivity whereas responsibility is important to investment in physical and human capital. We also show that respect and responsibility are embedded in institutions and may overcome the negative macroeconomic effects associated with fractionalized societies.