| Popis: |
Why do voters prefer pro-cyclical fiscal policies in some countries and not others? Latin American governments often engage in spending sprees during boom years and undertake cuts during recessions, amplifying economic volatility. These policies are commonly explained with the electoral incentives of governments to prioritize current consumption over long-term investment. But although voters play a crucial role in this mechanism, we know little about their preferences towards the inter-temporal allocation of public spending. This project, therefore, examines the attitudes of Latin American voters towards pro- and counter-cyclical fiscal policies and how these attitudes vary with voters’ discount rates, risk aversion and trust in politicians and the current vs. future governments. We test our hypotheses using an original survey of 12’000 respondents in eight countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. |
