TY  - RPRT
        AU  - Berlemann, Michael
AU  - Steinhardt, Max F.
AU  - Tutt, Jascha
        TI  - Do Natural Disasters Stimulate Individual Saving? Evidence from a Natural Experiment in a Highly Developed Country
        PY  - 2015/Apr/
        PB  - Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)
        CY  - Bonn
        T2  - IZA Discussion Paper
        IS  - 9026
        UR  - https://www.iza.org/publications/dp9026
        AB  - While various empirical studies have found negative growth-effects of natural disasters, little is yet known about the microeconomic channels through which disasters might affect short- and especially long-term growth. This paper contributes to filling this gap in the literature by studying how natural disasters affect individual saving decisions. This study makes use of a natural experiment created by the European Flood of August 2002. Using micro data from the German Socio-Economic Panel that we combine with geographic flood data, we compare the savings behavior of affected and non-affected individuals by using a difference-in-differences approach. Our empirical results indicate that natural disasters depress individual saving decisions, which might be the consequence of a Samaritan's Dilemma.
        KW  - natural disasters
KW  - floods
KW  - growth
KW  - saving behavior
KW  - difference-in-differences approach
        ER  -