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Food Comes First, Then Morals: Redistribution Preferences, Altruism and Group Heterogeneity in Western Europe

Author

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  • David Rueda

    (Department of Politics & IR and Nuffield College, University of Oxford)

Abstract

Altruism is an important omitted variable in much of the Political Economy literature. While material self-interest is the base of most approaches to redistribution (first affecting preferences and then politics and policy), there is a paucity of research on inequality aversion. I propose that other-regarding concerns influence redistribution preferences and that (1) they matter most to those in less material need and (2) they are conditional on the identity of the poor. Altruism is a luxury good most relevant to the rich, and it is most influential when the recipients of benefits are similar to those financing them. Using data from the European Social Survey from 2002 to 2010, I will show that group homogeneity magnifies (or limits) the importance of altruism for the rich. In making these distinctions between the poor and the rich, the arguments in this paper challenge some influential approaches to the politics of inequality.

Suggested Citation

  • David Rueda, 2014. "Food Comes First, Then Morals: Redistribution Preferences, Altruism and Group Heterogeneity in Western Europe," CAGE Online Working Paper Series 200, Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (CAGE).
    • Handle: RePEc:cge:wacage:200
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    File URL: http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/economics/research/centres/cage/manage/publications/200-2014_rueda.pdf
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    Cited by:

    1. Takanori Sumino, 2016. "Level or Concentration? A Cross-national Analysis of Public Attitudes Towards Taxation Policies," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 129(3), pages 1115-1134, December.
    2. Choi, Gwangeun, 2019. "Revisiting the redistribution hypothesis with perceived inequality and redistributive preferences," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 220-244.
    3. Gwangeun Choi, 2021. "Individuals’ socioeconomic position, inequality perceptions, and redistributive preferences in OECD countries," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 19(2), pages 239-264, June.
    4. Thewissen, Stefan & Rueda, David, 2016. "Automation and the Welfare State: Technological Change as a Determinant of Redistribution Preferences," INET Oxford Working Papers 2016-02, Institute for New Economic Thinking at the Oxford Martin School, University of Oxford.
    5. Neundorf, Anja & Cavaille, Charlotte, 2016. "The price of sharing: support for universal and equal access to health care in diversifying neighborhoods," ISER Working Paper Series 2016-10, Institute for Social and Economic Research.
    6. Collier, Paul, 2016. "The cultural foundations of economic failure: A conceptual toolkit," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 126(PB), pages 5-24.

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    social policy; welfare state;

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