Work

Beyond Income Disparities: Perceived Health and Education Inequities Drive Actions to Reduce Economic Inequality

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: ABSTRACT Perceiving income disparities has a limited impact on attitudes towards reducing economic inequality. In this research, we proposed a novel and alternative strategy by focusing on other aspects intrinsically related to economic inequality, such as unequal access to health and education resources. We investigated whether recognizing inequality in health and education, beyond income disparities, could motivate people to reduce economic inequality. In four preregistered studies (NStudy1 = 513, NStudy2 = 1536, NStudy3 = 443, NStudy4 = 400), we showed that perceived economic inequality in health and education, over and above perceived income disparities, leads to greater intolerance towards inequality and increased support for redistributive policies and collective actions. Our findings suggest that heightened awareness of economic inequality in aspects meaningful for individuals’ lives, such as health or education, may foster support for redistributive policies and engagement in collective actions to mitigate such disparities.

Source: European Journal of Social Psychology

DOI: 10.1002/ejsp.3151

Authors: Francisco Miguel Soler‐Martínez, Efraín García‐Sánchez, Guillermo B. Willis

Institutions: Universidad de Granada, Aarhus University, Centro de Investigación Mente, Cerebro y Comportamiento, Stanford University

Language: English

Topic: Social and Intergroup Psychology

Subfield: Sociology and Political Science

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Reduced inequalities

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,980