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What Does the Public Know about Economic Policy, and How Does It Know It?

Alan S. Blinder
Princeton University - Department of Economics; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

Alan B. Krueger
Princeton University - Industrial Relations Section; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER); Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA)


September 2004

NBER Working Paper No. W10787

Abstract:     
Public opinion influences politicians, and therefore influences public policy decisions. What are the roles of self-interest, knowledge, and ideology in public opinion formation? And how do people learn about economic issues? Using a new, specially-designed survey, we find that most respondents express a strong desire to be well informed on economic policy issues, and that television is their dominant source of information. On a variety of major policy issues (e.g., taxes, social security, health insurance), ideology is the most important determinant of public opinion, while measures of self-interest are the least important. Knowledge about the economy ranks somewhere in between.

JEL Classifications: D70, E60

Working Paper Series

Date posted: October 05, 2004 ; Last revised: October 10, 2004

Suggested Citation

Blinder, Alan S. and Krueger, Alan B., What Does the Public Know about Economic Policy, and How Does It Know It? (September 2004). NBER Working Paper No. W10787. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=595186


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Contact Information

Alan S. Blinder (Contact Author)
Princeton University - Department of Economics ( email )
Princeton, NJ 08544-1021
United States
National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)
1050 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02138
United States
Alan B. Krueger
Princeton University - Industrial Relations Section ( email )
Princeton, NJ 08544-2098
United States
609-258-4046 (Phone)
609-258-2907 (Fax)
National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)
1050 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02138
United States
Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA)
P.O. Box 7240
D-53072 Bonn Germany
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