Context

During the last economic crisis, income inequality has risen in most EU countries and the situation is likely to worsen due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Despite this, there is no evidence that support for redistributive social policies has increased.

Against this backdrop, the European Pillar of Social Rights aims to tackle inequalities in key areas, and thereby to strengthen the European Social Model.

Goals

The project aims to investigate 2 fundamental aspects related to inequality, and the links between them:

• people's perceptions of inequalities – including how to measure them, the (mis)match between perceived and actual inequalities, the role of past experience and exposure to local inequality, and the effect of informing people about objective inequality in society.

• people's preferences for redistribution – including the means through which this redistribution occurs (for instance, through income taxes, welfare, public services) and the role of stereotypes in this respect

In addition, the project aims to derive policy implications regarding support for redistribution, and the prevention of social conflicts and political unrest.

Methods

To reach these objectives, we are conducting a comprehensive literature review on inequality from a behavioural perspective.

Expected outcomes

We plan to continue working on perceptions of inequality and their impact on society, especially in light of the negative consequences that the Covid-19 emergency had on equality and access to the labour market.