Through a model that distinguishes between privately-held and publicly-declared preferences, and between private and public beliefs, this paper explains why a society might cling to its past choices. All four variables are endogenous to the model. Following the introduction of a measure of collective conservatism, the paper turns to the determinants and consequences of feedback from society's choices to its members' private beliefs and preferences. The theory is applied to the persistence of India's caste system to explain why the lowest castes have been among the system's most committed supporters.
 

Economic Journal, 97 (September 1987): 642-665.