Who believes in fiscal and monetary stimulus? Evidence from a survey of Pennsylvania residents

David Amdur

Economics Bulletin, 2013, vol. 33, issue 3, 2140-2155

Abstract: Does the public believe that fiscal and monetary stimulus reduce unemployment? I present survey evidence on this question from a random sample of Pennsylvania residents. Few respondents express a consistently Keynesian view of fiscal or monetary stimulus. In fact, the typical respondent believes that an increase in government spending makes unemployment worse. Views on monetary stimulus depend on how the question is framed. The typical respondent believes that Fed money creation worsens unemployment while a Fed interest rate cut improves it. Beliefs about policy effectiveness fall largely, but not entirely, along partisan lines. The Democratic "tilt" towards government spending - in terms of its alleged positive employment effects - appears stronger than the Republican tilt towards tax cuts.

Keywords: Fiscal stimulus; monetary stimulus; unemployment; Keynesian economics; opinion survey (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: E6 H3 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2013-08-22
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