Jan Duchoslav: Prenatal Temperature Shocks Reduce Cooperation

Evidence from Public Goods Games in Uganda

Using historical climate data combined with data on child and adult behavior in public goods games, we show that abnormally high ambient temperatures during gestation decrease individual contributions to the public good in a statistically and economically significant way. A 1 standard deviation rise in mean ambient temperature during gestation lowers children’s cooperation rate in a dichotomous public goods game by 11% points, and the reduced taste for cooperation lasts into adulthood.