Projects per year
Abstract
Public and individual support for a policy is affected by how it is designed – that is, how eligibility is determined. This results in universal policies being more popular than contributions-based policies, which in turn enjoy more public support than the selective kind. The literature on welfare attitudes have argued that this ‘policy design effect’ can be explained by a combination of self-interest patterns, public perceptions of the recipient group and whether eligibility under the policy is perceived as fair or arbitrary.The explanations, however, lack micro-level theory and testing as to why the design of a policy affects individual and public support. This article seeks to explain this policy design effect by theoretically outlining and testing how being proximate to recipients of a social benefit affects attitudes towards the benefit. A survey of attitudes towards spending on five social benefits in Denmark shows a large
impact on attitudes from being proximate to recipients under selective policies, little or no impact from universal policies and a pattern that falls in-between for the contributions-based policy. This article thus provides micro-level evidence for the different impacts on attitudes depending on the design of a policy, and a possible explanation for why the design impacts attitudes differently.
impact on attitudes from being proximate to recipients under selective policies, little or no impact from universal policies and a pattern that falls in-between for the contributions-based policy. This article thus provides micro-level evidence for the different impacts on attitudes depending on the design of a policy, and a possible explanation for why the design impacts attitudes differently.
Original language | Danish |
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Journal | Scandinavian Political Studies |
Volume | 37 |
Issue number | 4 |
Pages (from-to) | 366-384 |
ISSN | 0080-6757 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2014 |
Projects
- 1 Finished
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Sapere Aude: The Nordic model and its contemporary inhabitants – exploring stability and change from a micro perspective
Larsen, C. A., Lolle, H. L., Breidahl, K. N., Kjærsgård, A. P., Hedegaard, T. F., Frederiksen, M., Fersch, B. & Møberg, R. J.
Independent Research Fund Denmark | Sapere Aude
01/06/2011 → 31/05/2015
Project: Research
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Activities
- 1 Talks and presentations in private or public companies
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Disentangling policy design: proximity as an explanation of the policy design effect on attitudes towards social benefits
Troels Fage Hedegaard (Speaker)
10 Aug 2013 → 13 Aug 2013Activity: Talks and presentations › Talks and presentations in private or public companies