Attitudes Toward Economic Globalization: Does Knowledge Matter?

Abstract

Previous research has found that higher educational attainment is consistently associated with more positive attitudes toward globalization. This result has been interpreted as evidence of a skill-endowment effect, consistent with the predictions of the Stolper-Samuelson theorem. However, these studies largely ignore the possible informational component of education (Do individuals with higher educational attainment know more about globalization?). This paper addresses three fundamental questions about economic globalization. First, what is the distribution of knowledge of economic globalization (How much do people know)? Second, what factors help explain this distribution (Who knows what)? And finally, does knowledge of economic globalization help explain attitudes toward economic globalization (Does knowledge affect attitudes)? We find that individuals with greater knowledge of economic globalization tend to have more positive attitudes toward economic globalization. We also find that the relationship between education and attitudes is complex. Education increases knowledge, which in turn affects attitudes, but controlling for knowledge, higher educational attainment is still associated with more positive attitudes toward economic globalization.