Family Matters: How Family Concerns Relate to Policy Preferences and Political Choice
Work with Zack Grant and Geoffrey Evans, Nuffield Politics Research Centre, Nuffield College
Where do people get their policy preferences from? We argue that one over-looked, but important mechanism, is people’s family ties, comprising a key ‘in-group’ through which emotional bonds and linked fates mean the financial well-being of close family members, and the risks of supporting them, form an important driver of policy preferences and political choices.
Family ties are rarely, if ever, asked about directly in surveys which otherwise focus on the household or the individual. To overcome these issues, we designed a new large survey of over 6,000 GB adults – Intergenpol-GB – in August 2022, with in-depth questions about close family members in different age groups, perceptions of financial well-being of family members (as well as individuals and households), expectations about the need to support family members, and questions to tap specific pro-young and pro-old policy preferences, alongside political variables and vote intentions.
Findings reveal robust relationships between the perceived financial well-being of young adults and support for more pro-young policies among those over forty, prioritisation of spending on different age groups and away from spending on one’s own age-group, and associations with support for different political parties. Findings also reveal, for the first time, a ‘care risk’ motivation for greater spending on older generations.
We conclude that ‘family matters’ for policy preferences and for political outcomes. Family concerns offer a potential bridge towards greater consensus in an era of intergenerational policy divides and challenges.
Booking is required for people outside of the Department of Social Policy and Intervention (DSPI).
DSPI Members do not need to register.
Work with Zack Grant and Geoffrey Evans, Nuffield Politics Research Centre, Nuffield College
Where do people get their policy preferences from? We argue that one over-looked, but important mechanism, is people’s family ties, comprising a key ‘in-group’ through which emotional bonds and linked fates mean the financial well-being of close family members, and the risks of supporting them, form an important driver of policy preferences and political choices.
Family ties are rarely, if ever, asked about directly in surveys which otherwise focus on the household or the individual. To overcome these issues, we designed a new large survey of over 6,000 GB adults – Intergenpol-GB – in August 2022, with in-depth questions about close family members in different age groups, perceptions of financial well-being of family members (as well as individuals and households), expectations about the need to support family members, and questions to tap specific pro-young and pro-old policy preferences, alongside political variables and vote intentions.
Findings reveal robust relationships between the perceived financial well-being of young adults and support for more pro-young policies among those over forty, prioritisation of spending on different age groups and away from spending on one’s own age-group, and associations with support for different political parties. Findings also reveal, for the first time, a ‘care risk’ motivation for greater spending on older generations.
We conclude that ‘family matters’ for policy preferences and for political outcomes. Family concerns offer a potential bridge towards greater consensus in an era of intergenerational policy divides and challenges.
Booking is required for people outside of the Department of Social Policy and Intervention (DSPI).
DSPI Members do not need to register.