ABSTRACT
The main question of this chapter is: what determines individual level support for income redistribution by the government? This question is important for at least two reasons. To begin with, redistribution is a central activity of governments in all Western democracies. All OECD countries redistribute substantial shares of their gross national products. Second, redistributive questions are some of the most contested issues in democracies. How people align with and vote for parties is – at least partially – influenced by their different degrees of support for income redistribution.
