Affiliation:
1. Department of Political Science University of Colorado at Boulder Boulder Colorado
2. Institute of Behavioral Science University of Colorado at Boulder Boulder Colorado
3. Department of Political Science, Institute of Behavioral Science University of Colorado at Boulder Boulder Colorado
Abstract
AbstractThe introduction of formal collective property rights to forest lands appears to have improved both environmental and economic outcomes, but there is limited evidence on how these reforms affect cooperative behavior among local resource users. We propose that when national governments issue collective land rights, they strengthen the collective psychological ownership among coowners and produce increased levels of cooperative behavior. Analyzing data from 213 forest user groups in 10 countries, and a framed field experiment in a subset of sites, we find that collective land titling is associated with significantly higher levels of cooperative behavior including increased levels of trust, more frequent interpersonal interactions related to both forestry and nonforestry activities, more self‐governing institutions, and greater equality in resource extraction patterns.
Funder
National Science Foundation
Subject
Nature and Landscape Conservation,Ecology,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics