Equal Living Conditions – Perceived Fairness and Economic Effects of Place-Based Policies

Equal Living Conditions – Perceived Fairness and Economic Effects of Place-Based Policies

(Third Party Funds Single)

Overall project:
Project leader: ,
Project members:
Start date: March 1, 2015
End date: October 31, 2018
Acronym:
Funding source: Volkswagen Stiftung
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Abstract

Living and working conditions among German regions, but also among European regions in general show remarkable differences, which are strongly affected by the decline and aging of the population. Recently, the European economic and fiscal crisis has revealed that regional, social and economic disparities cause the legitimacy of the political and social system to be disputed. These developments pose a major social and political challenge for Germany and Europe as a whole. Consequently, implementing equal living conditions in Germany and achieving convergence of European regions are declared top priorities by German and European policymakers. To meet the target, various policy mechanisms are in effect, first and foremost, the provision of basic public services in urban and rural areas, fiscal equalization programs, and regional policy measures to promote the development and structural adjustment of regions lagging behind. Considering the scope and persistence of place-based policies, their success and acceptance will depend substantially on their economic effects and the public perception. In part due to lack of appropriate data, it has not been seriously examined to what extent and by which subgroups of the population certain policy measures are considered as fair or unfair and how acceptance of policy measures is related to their economic effects. To close these research gaps, the research team, which unites experts from sociology, economics and economic geography, analyzes simultaneously the economic effects and the perception of place-based policies. The project consists of two interrelated subprojects. On the one hand, taking advantage of a large set of data on economic and social conditions at the regional level, the project studies in-depth the effects of selected policy measures. On the other hand, the project examines in detail the attitudes of Germans toward a wide range of place-based policies in order to determine how individual and regional characteristics affect these attitudes. Factors such as importance of self-interest, valuation of efficiency and perceived social justice constitute the core of the analysis. For the first time, using a factorial survey, an experimental design is introduced to identify attitudes regarding public policies aiming at equal living conditions.

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