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How information affects support for education spending: Evidence from survey experiments in Germany and the United States

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  • Lergetporer, Philipp
  • Schwerdt, Guido
  • Werner, Katharina
  • West, Martin R.
  • Woessmann, Ludger
Abstract
To study whether current spending levels and public knowledge of them contribute to transatlantic differences in policy preferences, we implement parallel survey experiments in Germany and the United States. In both countries, support for increased education spending and teacher salaries falls when respondents receive information about existing levels. Treatment effects vary by prior knowledge in a manner consistent with information effects rather than priming. Support for salary increases is inversely related to salary levels across American states, suggesting that higher salaries could explain much of Germans' lower support for increases. Information about the tradeoffs between specific spending categories shifts preferences from class-size reduction towards alternative purposes. Additional German experiments indicate that information effects extend to specific reform proposals and to other areas of public spending.

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  • Lergetporer, Philipp & Schwerdt, Guido & Werner, Katharina & West, Martin R. & Woessmann, Ludger, 2018. "How information affects support for education spending: Evidence from survey experiments in Germany and the United States," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 167(C), pages 138-157.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:pubeco:v:167:y:2018:i:c:p:138-157
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2018.09.011
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Policy preferences; Cross-country comparison; Germany; United States; Education spending; Information; Survey experiments;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H52 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Government Expenditures and Education
    • I22 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Educational Finance; Financial Aid
    • D72 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
    • D83 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Search; Learning; Information and Knowledge; Communication; Belief; Unawareness

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