Working Paper: NBER ID: w31688
Authors: Sahil Chinoy; Nathan Nunn; Sandra Sequeira; Stefanie Stantcheva
Abstract: We investigate the origins and implications of zero-sum thinking – the belief that gains for one individual or group tend to come at the cost of others. Using a new survey of a representative sample of 20,400 US residents, we measure zero-sum thinking, political preferences, policy views, and a rich array of ancestral information spanning four generations. We find that a more zero-sum mindset is strongly associated with more support for government redistribution, race- and gender-based affirmative action, and more restrictive immigration policies. Furthermore, zero-sum thinking can be traced back to the experiences of both the individual and their ancestors, encompassing factors such as the degree of intergenerational upward mobility they experienced, whether they immigrated to the United States or lived in a location with more immigrants, and whether they were enslaved or lived in a location with more enslavement.
Keywords: No keywords provided
JEL Codes: N10; P00
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| zerosum mindset (C72) | support for government redistribution (H53) |
| zerosum mindset (C72) | support for affirmative action (J78) |
| zerosum mindset (C72) | support for restrictive immigration policies (K37) |
| intergenerational economic mobility (J62) | zerosum thinking (C70) |
| ancestral experiences (Z10) | zerosum thinking (C70) |
| immigration history (K37) | zerosum thinking (C70) |
| history of enslavement (N30) | zerosum worldview (F01) |