How Do Beliefs About the Gender Wage Gap Affect the Demand for Public Policy?

Abstract

I conduct a pre-registered online information experiment with a representative sample of the US population to study the relationship between people's beliefs about the size of the gender wage gap and their demand for policies aimed at mitigating it. Beliefs about the size of the wage gap causally affect demand for equal pay legislation and for statutory affirmative action programs for women, but only account for a minor share of the polarization in policy views across the political spectrum and by gender. Changes in policy demand seem to be driven by changes in beliefs about gender-based discrimination in labor markets and related fairness concerns, whereas self-interest does not play an important role. A substantial share of individuals hold pessimistic beliefs about the effectiveness of government intervention, limiting the overall elasticity of policy demand to the perceived size of wage differentials.

Keywords: gender wage gap, beliefs, policy preferences, fairness, information

JEL Classification: C91, D63, D72, D83, J38, J78