A new paper in the Journal of Economic Inequality finds that perceptions of domestic inequality significantly influence views on cross-country economic disparities, more so than actual objective socio-economic metrics. The paper was written in collaboration between researchers from Italy (Carmen Cervone, Federica Durante, Anne Maass, Caterina Suitner, Roberta Rosa Valtorta, and Michela Vezzoli) and from HUN-REN (Attila Gáspár at the Centre for Economic and Regional Studies). This research provides critical insights into how people perceive inequality and underscores the role of subjective factors in shaping attitudes toward global inequality, presenting valuable insights from a survey spanning 31 countries (the ISSP 2015 Social Inequality V survey).
A key takeaway from the study is that individuals’ attitudes toward cross-country inequality are strongly influenced by their views on domestic economic disparities. People who perceive high levels of inequality within their own countries are more likely to express concern about global economic inequalities. Also, people who desire lower levels of inequality in their own societies are markedly more concerned about cross-country inequality, suggesting that attitudes toward fairness and justice within a country extend beyond national borders. Interestingly, this perception-driven approach reveals that people do not rely on exact data about other countries’ economic standings; rather, they draw on their own country’s context as a heuristic. The data suggest that perceptions about domestic inequality serve as a powerful anchor for shaping opinions about economic disparities worldwide.
The authors find that subjective socio-economic status (SES) plays a more significant role in shaping attitudes toward global inequality than objective SES metrics, such as household income or Gross National Product per capita. People who place themselves lower on the socio-economic ladder are more likely to view cross-country inequality as problematic. In other words, how people feel about their own standing within society—regardless of their actual income level—affects their views on global inequality.
The study sheds light on demographic factors that correlate with attitudes toward global inequality. Education, for instance, emerges as a strong predictor; individuals with higher levels of education are more likely to express concern over cross-country economic differences. Similarly, women, urban residents, and those with more frequent interactions across different socio-economic groups exhibit higher concern for global inequality. Political orientation also plays a role, with individuals leaning toward progressive or left-wing ideologies more likely to express concerns over cross-country inequality.
Gáspár, A., Cervone, C., Durante, F. et al. Inequality perception and preferences globally and locally – correlational evidence from a large-scale cross-country survey. J Econ Inequal (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10888-024-09647-4
