Doctoral Dissertation Research: Public Views about Economic Inequality and Government Policies

这项研究研究了大量抽样调查，作为衡量公众对经济不平等和政府政策的意见的工具。PI走访了美国三个州(南卡罗来纳州、西弗吉尼亚州和佛蒙特州)，与来自不同背景的人就他们的态度进行了交谈。通过收集来自国家不同角落和不同经济地位的一系列观点，该项目试图深入了解公民如何用自己的话来看待经济不平等，以及他们对政府应该如何应对公民面临的经济挑战的看法。在这个项目中，PI试图更好地理解关于不平等的观点和旨在减少不平等的政府措施背后的因果机制。从理论上讲，美国人相信有条件的平等，他们支持平等的政策，只要他们认为受益者是“像我一样的人”。假设公众更喜欢政府在某些情况下做得更多，而在其他情况下做得更少。该项目的实地工作涉及多种类型的数据收集，包括焦点小组和对当地居民的深入采访，并采用了实证主义和解释主义的方法论方法。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This research studies mass sample surveys as tools for measuring public opinion about economic inequality and government policies. The PI visits three American states (South Carolina, West Virginia, and Vermont) to talk to individuals from a variety of backgrounds regarding their attitudes. Through gathering a range of perspectives from different corners of the country and across economic status, this project seeks to gain insights into how citizens view economic inequality in their own words, as well as their beliefs about ways in which the government should address economic challenges facing citizens. In this project, the PI seeks to better understand the causal mechanisms underlying views about inequality and government measures aimed at decreasing inequality. It is theorized that Americans believe in conditional equality, where they support equalizing policies as long as they perceive the beneficiaries as "people like me." It is hypothesized the public prefers the government to do more in some circumstances and less in others. The fieldwork for the project involves multiple types of data collection, including focus groups and in-depth interviews with local residents, and draws on both positivist and interpretivist methodological approaches.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.