Coming together or growing apart? Globalization, class and redistributive preferences

Abstract

Globalization refers to a growth in international trade, the integration of financial markets and investment flows as well as greater labour mobility. It is also associated with greater market volatility and intensified competition. The general question we address is, does globalization strengthen or weaken public support for governmental redistribution? However, rather than assuming that globalization undermines or buffers welfare state support generally, we suppose that this effect might be class-specific. It might lead to a reduction in welfare state support for better-off classes while those at the lower end of the social strata may call for more governmental intervention. We test this hypothesis on the basis of cross-sectional data from the fourth round of the European Social Survey (ESS) (fielded 2008/2009). The results of multilevel analyses of 31 countries indicate that while welfare state support is generally lower in globalized countries, class cleavages in welfare attitudes are neither intensified nor diluted under conditions of globalization.