Individual Attitudes

Abstract

Studies on individual attitudes toward trade have flourished over the past two decades. They sought to understand how ordinary citizens form positions on trade policy and how voter attitudes can influence trade policy outcomes. This chapter critically reviews the evolution of this literature. It examines published and ongoing works on economic, ideational, and political origins of mass attitudes toward trade, using data from public opinion surveys and revealed preferences such as referendums. The chapter then discusses emerging experimental studies that have sought to address common endogeneity and collinearity issues that have slowed progress in this literature. In concluding, the chapter discusses promising lines of future research, such as studies that fill the missing link between individual attitudes and behaviors and the missing link between individual attitudes and group behaviors.

Keywords: trade, individual attitudes, public opinion, surveys, experimental studies