Abstract
We provide an overview of the field of preferences for redistribution research, including divergent terminological and theoretical approaches. We review the different uses of public attitudes, policy preferences and public opinion. We outline the theoretical roles of material interests, values and opinion-policy endogeneity. We also introduce and summarize the original research presented in this Special Issue. Among the key contributions of the Special Issue to the subfield are novel explorations of how socialization affects preferences for redistribution; an examination of how perceptions about inequality translate into policy preferences; a call for more research into the links between taxation and social policy preferences; explanations for the paradox of low levels of support for redistribution in the famously-generous Nordic countries; and new insights into class-specific policy preferences as well as the roles of immigration and diversity in determining such preferences.
Highlights
Introduction to Inequality and Public PreferencesThe concentration of income and wealth among an increasingly smaller share of the global population [1] may threaten the stability of societies and their social security and economic productivity.A dramatic neoliberal turn began in the United States and United Kingdom in the 1980s that meant retrenchment of social insurance and social protection systems [2,3]
We identify many areas where further research is of critical importance
Given the vagaries or interchangeability of terms, we did not push authors in any particular direction in terminological usage, but we assert that any scholarship on preferences, attitudes or public opinion should carefully consider the theories, especially stemming from public opinion research, that preferences in the aggregate or on the whole for a given society have an impact on that society
Summary
The concentration of income and wealth among an increasingly smaller share of the global population [1] may threaten the stability of societies and their social security and economic productivity. This prompts our continued attention to inequality and redistribution as scholars of policy preferences. This article reviews some of the history of attitudes, preferences, and public opinion regarding inequality and redistribution. It introduces our Special Issue of this journal and how its articles contribute to the state of the art in this interdisciplinary field. We discuss each contribution to this Special Issue and how it links to the state of the art in this diverse topic
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