Information and Preferences for Public Spending: Evidence from Representative Survey Experiments

Arbeitspapier

The electorates’ lack of information about the extent of public spending may cause misalignments between voters’ preferences and the size of government. We devise a series of representative survey experiments in Germany that randomly provide treatment groups with information on current spending levels. Results show that such information strongly reduces support for public spending in various domains from social security to defense. Data on prior information status on school spending and teacher salaries shows that treatment effects are strongest for those who initially underestimated spending levels, indicating genuine information effects rather than pure priming effects. Information on spending requirements also reduces support for specific education reforms. Preferences on spending across education levels are also malleable to information.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: CESifo Working Paper ; No. 5938

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Structure, Scope, and Performance of Government ; Search; Learning; Information and Knowledge; Communication; Belief; Unawareness ; Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior ; National Government Expenditures and Education ; Educational Finance; Financial Aid ; Capitalist Systems: Political Economy
• Subject: public spending ; information ; preferences ; education spending ; survey experiment

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Lergetporer, Philipp ; Schwerdt, Guido ; Werner, Katharina ; Woessmann, Ludger
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Center for Economic Studies and ifo Institute (CESifo)
• (where): Munich
• (when): 2016

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/144973
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:43 AM CET