IDEOLOGY AND THE GROWTH OF GOVERNMENT

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Pickering, Andrew; Rockey, James
• 署名单位: University of Bristol; University of Leicester
• 刊物名称: REVIEW OF ECONOMICS AND STATISTICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0034-6535
• DOI: 10.1162/REST_a_00101
• 发表日期: 2011-08
• 页码: 907-919
• 关键词: rational theory; size; POLITICS; hypothesis; provision; PARTIES

摘要

We analyze the impact of ideology on the size of government. In a simple model, the government sets redistribution and provision of public services according to the preferences of the median voter. Ideology is defined in terms of preferences for public services, and the impact of ideology on the size of government is shown to increase with mean income. This idea is tested using measures of ideology based on party manifestos. We show that the interaction of ideology and mean income has a major role in explaining the increase and divergence in government size observed across OECD countries.