Redistributive Preferences, Redistribution, and Inequality: Evidence from a Panel of OECD Countries

Andreas Kuhn ()
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Andreas Kuhn: Swiss Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training

No 6721, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: This paper describes individuals’ inequality perceptions, distributional norms, and redistributive preferences in a panel of OECD countries, primarily focusing on the association between these subjective measures and the effective level of inequality and redistribution. Not surprisingly, the effective level of redistribution (after tax-and-transfer inequality) is positively (negatively) correlated with redistributive preferences. There is also evidence showing that the subjective and objective dimension of inequality and redistribution are, at least partially, linked with individuals’ political preferences and their voting behavior. The association between objective and subjective measures of inequality and redistribution vanishes, however, once more fundamental country characteristics are taken into account. This suggests that these characteristics explain both redistributive preferences as well as the effective level of redistribution and after tax-and-transfer inequality.

Keywords: inequality perceptions; distributional norms; redistributive preferences; inequality; redistribution; political preferences (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D31 D63 J31 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 38 pages
Date: 2012-07
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-ltv, nep-pbe, nep-pol and nep-pub
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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