Palma, NunoReis, Jaime2021-06-082021-06-082021Palma, N., Reis, J. (2021). Can autocracy promote literacy? Evidence from a cultural alignment success story. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, Vol. 186, 412-4360167-2681http://hdl.handle.net/10451/48397Do countries with less democratic forms of government necessarily have lower literacy rates as a consequence? Using a random sample of more than 9000 individuals from military archives in 20th century Portugal, we show that 20-year old males were 50% more likely to end up literate under a nondemocratic regime than under a more democratic one. Our results are robust to controlling for a host of factors including economic growth, the disease environment, and regional fixed effects. We argue for a political economy and cultural explanation for the relative success of the authoritarian regime in promoting basic education.engjournal article10.1016/j.jebo.2021.02.011