Ingram P, Silverman B S. The Cultural Contingency of Structure: Evidence from Entry to the Slave Trade In and Around the Abolition Movement[J]. American Journal of Sociology, 2016, 122(3): 755-797.
Background and Research Questions:
(1) Theory: There has been prior attention to the interdependence of culture and structure, most prominently with regard to networks. However, the energy has mostly gone into examining the influences of networks on culture.
(2) Case: Our empirical analysis examines the structural and cultural forces behind entry into the Liverpool slave trade, with particular attention to how those forces changed around the abolition movement. In other words, we ask, what makes a trader become a slave trader?
(3) Questions: Whether or not the economic effects of social structure depend on Culture?
A. Social Influence and Entry to the Slave Trade
B. Status and Entry to the Slave Trade