Better Off Than We Know

John R. Chambers · Lawton K. Swan · Martin Heesacker

156 citations0/0 files storedPsychological Science

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Income, Poverty, and Inequality Social Policy and Reform Studies Social and Intergroup Psychology

Abstract

Three studies examined Americans' perceptions of incomes and income inequality using a variety of criterion measures. Contrary to recent findings indicating that Americans underestimate wealth inequality, we found that Americans not only overestimated the rise of income inequality over time, but also underestimated average incomes. Thus, economic conditions in America are more favorable than people seem to realize. Furthermore, ideological differences emerged in two of these studies, such that political liberals overestimated the rise of inequality more than political conservatives. Implications of these findings for public policy debates and ideological disagreements are discussed.

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References

2008Current Population Reports, P60-235, Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2007 2011Building a Better America—One Wealth Quintile at a Time 2008Why Are Conservatives Happier Than Liberals?2002Incorporating the Irrelevant: Anchors in Judgments of Belief and Value 2000Heterogeneity in Perceptions of National Economic Conditions 2011Conservatives are happier than liberals, but why? Political ideology, personality, and life satisfaction 2012What do Americans know about inequality? It depends on how you ask them

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