Socioeconomic Stereotypes

Explaining Variation in Preferences for Taxing the Rich

Datos Bibliográficos

ID6179541
AutoresJordan Michael Ragusa, Jordan Ragusa (0000-0002-8600-4306, College of Charleston, autor de correspondencia)
Año2015
Volumen43
Número2
Páginas327-359
Fecha de publicación2015-03-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaAmerican Politics Research (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 1532-673X • E-ISSN: 1552-3373
EditorialSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/1532673x14539547
OpenAlexW2061386731
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas17
Referencias citadas52

Motivated by research showing that policy preferences are driven by social-interests rather than strict self-interest, this article examines if stereotypes of “the rich” shape Americans’ tax policy preferences. For this project, an original free-response survey was designed asking respondents to describe “the rich.” Respondents offered 1,570 unique descriptions, ranging from “hard working” and “job producer” to “selfish” and “inheritance.” In the analysis, these stereotypes were modeled in three ways: (a) as affective stereotypes, (b) as discrete categories, and (c) as deservingness stereotypes. There are three main findings. First, political ideology and affective stereotypes have large and statistically indistinguishable effects on tax policy preferences. Second, deservingness stereotypes—in particular, whether the rich exhibit dispositional and prosocial characteristics—have particularly large effects on preferences for taxing the wealthy. And third, both affective and deservingness stereotypes have an interactive effect with personal ideology. For self-described liberals, preferences for taxing the wealthy are largely a function of ideological considerations. For conservatives, however, tax policy preferences are determined by a mix of ideology and stereotypes. In sum, the findings suggest that stereotypes affect policy preferences even when the target belongs to an advantaged group and the policy domain is nonracial

Ideology · Political science · Politics · Prosocial behavior · Social preferences · Socioeconomic status · Sociology · Voting · Electoral Systems and Political Participation · Psychology · Social and Intergroup Psychology · Social Psychology · Taxation and Compliance Studies