Ideology of Affluence: Explanations for Inequality and Economic Policy Preferences among Rich Americans

Abstract

As economic inequality increases, so does the importance of understanding affluent perspectives on the problem. We examine whether affluent Americans are more likely than others to hold individuals responsible for relative success in life and whether such beliefs are associated with their economic policy attitudes. We conducted a novel survey that oversampled the top 5% of the US income and wealth distributions. We elicited views about dispositional (intelligence, hard work) and situational (family, luck) causes of success as well as explanations for why success-linked traits vary (people’s choices, environments, genes). Affluent Americans were more likely than others to emphasize dispositional reasons for getting ahead, and the top 1% were unique in emphasizing both choices and genes as causes of those traits. This individualization of economic outcomes was more strongly associated with economic conservatism among the affluent than others, suggesting it may play a role in justifying their greater conservatism.