ABSTRACT
It would be controversial, if not downright silly, to claim that the economy moves public opinion regardless of a country’s political context. Politics is a crucial independent and mediating factor that partially determines the dynamics of support (Eulau and Lewis-Beck 1985). Just as economic conditions vary over time and across countries, politics varies as well. Thus, as a comparative and cross-national inquiry into government popularity, this study also focuses on a country’s political context and institutions. It is difficult to understand the relationship between economics and government popularity in, say, Denmark and France, unless one understands the impact these countries’ economies and politics have on the way citizens think about the government.
