The origins of redistributive policy preferences: political socialisation with and without a welfare state

Research on the impact of the macroeconomy on individual-level preferences for redistribution has produced varying results. This paper presents a new theory on the presence of an expansive welfare state during one’s formative years as a source of heterogeneity in the effect that macroeconomic condit...

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Main Authors: Neundorf, Anja, Soroka, Stuart
Format: Article
Published: Taylor & Francis 2017
Subjects:
Online Access:https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/47665/
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author Neundorf, Anja
Soroka, Stuart
author_facet Neundorf, Anja
Soroka, Stuart
author_sort Neundorf, Anja
building Nottingham Research Data Repository
collection Online Access
description Research on the impact of the macroeconomy on individual-level preferences for redistribution has produced varying results. This paper presents a new theory on the presence of an expansive welfare state during one’s formative years as a source of heterogeneity in the effect that macroeconomic conditions have on individuals’ preferences for redistributive policy. This theory is tested using cohort analysis via the British Social Attitudes surveys (1983–2010), with generations coming of age between the end of World War I and today. Findings confirm that cohorts that were socialised before and after the introduction of the welfare state react differently to economic crises: the former become less supportive of redistribution, while the latter become more supportive. The research sheds light on the long-term shifts of support for the welfare state due to generational replacement.
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spelling nottingham-476652020-05-04T19:13:53Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/47665/ The origins of redistributive policy preferences: political socialisation with and without a welfare state Neundorf, Anja Soroka, Stuart Research on the impact of the macroeconomy on individual-level preferences for redistribution has produced varying results. This paper presents a new theory on the presence of an expansive welfare state during one’s formative years as a source of heterogeneity in the effect that macroeconomic conditions have on individuals’ preferences for redistributive policy. This theory is tested using cohort analysis via the British Social Attitudes surveys (1983–2010), with generations coming of age between the end of World War I and today. Findings confirm that cohorts that were socialised before and after the introduction of the welfare state react differently to economic crises: the former become less supportive of redistribution, while the latter become more supportive. The research sheds light on the long-term shifts of support for the welfare state due to generational replacement. Taylor & Francis 2017-10-25 Article PeerReviewed Neundorf, Anja and Soroka, Stuart (2017) The origins of redistributive policy preferences: political socialisation with and without a welfare state. West European Politics . pp. 1-28. ISSN 1743-9655 Redistributive policy; public opinion; cohort analysis; political socialisation; Great Britain http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/01402382.2017.1388666 doi:10.1080/01402382.2017.1388666 doi:10.1080/01402382.2017.1388666
spellingShingle Redistributive policy; public opinion; cohort analysis; political socialisation; Great Britain
Neundorf, Anja
Soroka, Stuart
The origins of redistributive policy preferences: political socialisation with and without a welfare state
title The origins of redistributive policy preferences: political socialisation with and without a welfare state
title_full The origins of redistributive policy preferences: political socialisation with and without a welfare state
title_fullStr The origins of redistributive policy preferences: political socialisation with and without a welfare state
title_full_unstemmed The origins of redistributive policy preferences: political socialisation with and without a welfare state
title_short The origins of redistributive policy preferences: political socialisation with and without a welfare state
title_sort origins of redistributive policy preferences: political socialisation with and without a welfare state
topic Redistributive policy; public opinion; cohort analysis; political socialisation; Great Britain
url https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/47665/
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/47665/
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/47665/