Beliefs about Wealth Inequality and Preferences for Redistribution

Last registered on March 20, 2023
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Beliefs about Wealth Inequality and Preferences for Redistribution
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0011062
Initial registration date
March 10, 2023

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
March 13, 2023, 3:25 PM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Last updated
March 20, 2023, 10:47 AM EDT

Last updated is the most recent time when changes to the trial's registration were published.

Locations

Country
Germany
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Elisa Stumpf
Affiliation
Friedrich Schiller University Jena
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Silke Uebelmesser
PI Affiliation
Friedrich Schiller University Jena

Additional Trial Information

Status
In development
Start date
2023-03-16
End date
2024-03-01
Keywords
Behavior, Welfare
Additional Keywords
wealth distribution, preferences for redistribution, inequality, survey experiment, vignette study, information provision
JEL code(s)
C90, D31, D63, D83, H23
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
We conduct a large-scale representative online survey in Germany to analyze what survey participants know about the German wealth distribution and their position in it, how preferences for redistribution of wealth are affected by an information treatment and what role the characteristics of the potential taxpayer play for the preferences for redistribution.
To answer these questions, we implement an information provision experiment and a vignette study. Participants are randomly assigned to one of two treatment groups, a control group or the vignette group. The first treatment group receives information about the actual shape of the German wealth distribution using histograms and the second treatment group gets informed about their individual position in the wealth distribution. Our outcomes capture wealth inequality aversion, preferences for redistribution of wealth, equality of opportunity and the introduction of a specific yearly wealth tax. Additionally, the vignette group states their support for a one-off wealth tax.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Stumpf, Elisa and Silke Uebelmesser. 2023. "Beliefs about Wealth Inequality and Preferences for Redistribution." AEA RCT Registry. March 20. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.11062-2.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
The participants of our survey are randomly assigned to four groups. Namely, treatment group 1, treatment group 2, control group and vignette group. Our intervention is two-fold: On one hand, as part of our information provision experiment, the first treatment group receives information about the aggregate shape of the wealth distribution in Germany using tailored histograms, while the second treatment group receives information about their individual position in the wealth distribution. The control group receives no information on either of these aspects. On the other hand, as part of our vignette study, each participants answers four vignettes in which a potential taxpayer is described. These vignettes vary by deservingness (the taxpayer worked hard vs. the taxpayer got lucky) and social background (the taxpayer is from a rich vs. poor family).
Intervention Start Date
2023-03-16
Intervention End Date
2023-03-30

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Information provision experiment:
- Wealth inequality aversion
- Preferences for redistribution of wealth
- Equality of opportunity
- Introduction of a specific yearly wealth tax

Vignette:
- Support for a once-off wealth tax
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
Information provision experiment:
In a first step, we elicit the participants' prior beliefs about the shape of the German wealth distribution as well as their perceived position in the distribution.
Afterwards, the first treatment group gets informed which histogram actually represents the German wealth distribution and the second treatment group is provided with information on their individual position in the wealth distribution. The control group receives no information and skips this step.
Then, we ask our outcome questions on wealth inequality aversion, preferences for redistribution of wealth, equality of opportunity and the introduction of a specific yearly wealth tax.
Lastly, we elicit the posterior beliefs of all three groups at the end of our survey.

Vignette study:
Participants in the vignette group all answer the same four vignettes. Each vignette consists of a fictional description of a person in Germany with a net wealth of over 1 million Euros. We vary the dimensions of deservingness (i.e., worked hard vs. got lucky) and social background (i.e., rich vs. poor family) within the descriptions. Following each vignette, we ask participants whether they would impose a one-time wealth tax of 10% on the person's wealth.
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
Randomization by a computer
Randomization Unit
Individual
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
No clustering
Sample size: planned number of observations
3,500 individuals
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
Approx. 875 individuals each in treatment group 1, treatment group 2, control group, vignette group
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
IRB of the Faculty of Business and Economics at the Friedrich Schiller University Jena
IRB Approval Date
2023-01-16
IRB Approval Number
N/A
Analysis Plan

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Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

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Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
No
Data Collection Complete
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials