Cultural Heterogeneity and Economic Development in Russia

Abstract

The paper studies change in the national and religious structure of the population and assesses the impact of cultural heterogeneity on the economic development of Russian regions. Sources of information on the national structure of the population are 2002 and 2010 censuses. The analysis of heterogeneity in the religious structure is carried out for 2012 and 2015 and sources of the data are Atlas of Religions and Nationalities of Russia and the Federal Agency for Nationality Affairs. Fractionalisation and polarisation indices are used to assess the level of cultural heterogeneity. The study of these characteristics showed that despite the intensification of migration processes in contemporary Russia, there were no major changes in the cultural structure of the population of the regions. At the same time, there is a wide variety of national and religious structures in the regions. The impact of cultural heterogeneity on economic development is estimated using regression analysis. The panel regression of gross regional product on labor, capital, controlling variables and indices of cultural heterogeneity is estimated. The results have shown: 1) the positive impact of ethnic and cultural fractionalisation on economic development; 2) the absence of a statistically significant relationship between the level of national polarisation and development; 3) the negative impact of religious polarisation on regional productivity. The results suggest that it is necessary to consider cultural heterogeneity of the society and the possibility of contradictions due to the cultural differences in the regional policy and in the decisions on the public finance