TY - JOUR
T1 - Greed, Envy, and Admiration
T2 - The Distinct Nature of Public Opinion about Redistribution from the Rich
AU - Hansen, Kristina Jessen
PY - 2023/2/6
Y1 - 2023/2/6
N2 - Research on public opinion about economic redistribution has made important progress by incorporating the psychological microfoundation that shapes support for redistribution to the poor. However, one piece is missing: the microfoundation shaping support for redistribution from the rich. I provide a novel theory about this facet of redistributive attitudes and how it is distinct. Observational data from three nationally representative samples in two different welfare systems and an experiment show that attitudes about taking from the rich are mainly driven by perceptions of their prosociality - whether they are greedy or generous. This contrasts with public opinion about giving to the poor that is mainly driven by perceptions of the efforts of poor people. Furthermore, while compassion shapes attitudes about giving to the poor, the emotions of admiration and envy shape attitudes about taking from the rich. These findings have important theoretical and empirical implications for public opinion about economic redistribution.
AB - Research on public opinion about economic redistribution has made important progress by incorporating the psychological microfoundation that shapes support for redistribution to the poor. However, one piece is missing: the microfoundation shaping support for redistribution from the rich. I provide a novel theory about this facet of redistributive attitudes and how it is distinct. Observational data from three nationally representative samples in two different welfare systems and an experiment show that attitudes about taking from the rich are mainly driven by perceptions of their prosociality - whether they are greedy or generous. This contrasts with public opinion about giving to the poor that is mainly driven by perceptions of the efforts of poor people. Furthermore, while compassion shapes attitudes about giving to the poor, the emotions of admiration and envy shape attitudes about taking from the rich. These findings have important theoretical and empirical implications for public opinion about economic redistribution.
UR - https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/american-political-science-review/article/greed-envy-and-admiration-the-distinct-nature-of-public-opinion-about-redistribution-from-the-rich/E543665F093D06A335DA3241222E7509
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85147737983&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1017/S0003055422000582
DO - 10.1017/S0003055422000582
M3 - Journal article
SN - 0003-0554
VL - 117
SP - 217
EP - 234
JO - American Political Science Review
JF - American Political Science Review
IS - 1
ER -