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Constitutions and Public Support for Welfare Policies *
Author(s) -
Iida Takeshi,
Matsubayashi Tetsuya
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
social science quarterly
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.482
H-Index - 90
eISSN - 1540-6237
pISSN - 0038-4941
DOI - 10.1111/j.1540-6237.2010.00680.x
Subject(s) - ambivalence , constitution , welfare , politics , elite , political science , survey data collection , public economics , welfare state , social welfare , affect (linguistics) , public opinion , social policy , political economy , public administration , economics , sociology , law , social psychology , psychology , statistics , mathematics , communication
Objectives. This research explores how constitutional designs affect a cross‐national gap in public support for welfare policies. We contend that the constitution's statements regarding the citizens' right to receive welfare services constrain elite discourse on social welfare, which in turn exerts a strong influence on the level of mass support for and ambivalence over welfare policies. Methods. Survey data from 15 consolidated democracies merged with country‐level data are analyzed using a hierarchical linear model. Results. Empirical analysis shows that citizens residing in countries with a more liberal constitution show more supportive and less ambivalent attitudes toward welfare policies. Conclusions. Our findings suggest that the political principles reflected in national constitutions explain the cross‐national gap in mass support for welfare policies.