Abstract
The distribution of land rights is an important economic and political issue, and it played a central role in the transition process in Europe and Asia. This paper analyzes the impact of the distribution of land on household welfare by using subjective well-being data from a rural household survey in Moldova, the poorest country in Europe. The recent land reform in Moldova provides a natural experiment on the impact of land ownership distribution on subjective well-being. We find that household land holdings have a positive effect on subjective well-being, but neighbors' average land holdings have a negative effect on subjective well-being. People, regardless of the land distribution and even given the relatively low living standards of these households, rate their welfare by looking at how much other people possess.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 61-85 |
Number of pages | 25 |
Journal | Eastern European Economics |
Volume | 51 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 1 Jan 2013 |
Keywords
- TRANSITION
- WELFARE
- INCOME
- SATISFACTION
- REFORM