Preferences for International Redistribution

Abstract

This paper examines the preferences for international redistribution using unique data from Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) and the Generalized Social Surveys (GSS). The paper finds low rates of private giving to international aid organizations. In addition, most U.S. households support reducing foreign aid rather than increasing assistance to other countries. The authors investigate two main explanations: (1) households may prefer low levels of both private and public giving to international aid organizations and support for global public goods (2) Perceptions of high levels of government giving crowd out private contributions towards global public goods and international aid.