When asked to name their top public concern, economic inequality found widespread consensus among respondents from 36 nations, with the affluent’s political influence topping the list of lead causes. It outranked discrimination against people based on their race or ethnicity, unequal rights for men and women, and discrimination against people based on their religion.
A new study from the Pew Research Center captures global perceptions of inequality and discrimination. Pew found there is widespread concern around the world, with respondents saying the gap between the rich and the poor is a “very big” (54%) or moderately (30%) big problem.
The research organization found that 60 percent of respondents from the nations surveyed believe the political influence of rich people is the reason for “a great deal” of economic inequality. Another 26 percent agree that their influence causes a “fair amount” of the unequal income distribution.
The economic future is met with global anxiety and a majority of those surveyed are calling for reform. More than half (57%) expect children to fare worse financially than their parents, a view shared across generations and by people at various income levels.
This perspective is widespread in multiple “high-income nations,” including Australia, Canada, France, Italy, Japan, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Conversely, countries like Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand are more optimistic. Nearly half of those surveyed from Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Mexico say children will be better off than their parents.
Still, there remains more pessimism concerning the economy since COVID- 19. In 15 of the 31 countries polled, the rate of respondents who believe children will fare worse than their parents has increased, surpassing pre-pandemic surveys.
Not surprisingly, age is a determinant, with younger adults more likely to favor significant economic changes than older people. In the U.S., 77% of adults under 35 want either major changes or complete reform of the economic system. This is compared with 58% of those who are 50 and older.
As it pertains to political ideology, the survey found respondents who self-identify as liberal or progressive are more likely to see income and gender inequality as well as racial and ethnic discrimination.
When it comes to the wealth gap between the rich and the poor, the United States represents the largest ideological gap, with 76% of liberal respondents holding this view. This is compared to 30% of respondents on the ideological right and represents a 46-point difference. Australia (40 points) and Korea (35 points) also had significant left-right gaps on this question.
In addition, Pew found that 33 of 36 countries agree that their nation needs major or complete reform. Only the citizens of the Netherlands (59%, minor/no changes), Sweden (57%, minor/no changes) and Singapore (71%, minor/no changes) disagree.
In the United States, 48% of those surveyed want major changes, while 20% call for “complete form.” Thirty-three percent of respondents believe the American economic system needs minor or no changes.
“In most of the countries we surveyed, there is widespread support for changing the economic system. In fact, in all but three nations, majorities say the economic system in their country needs major changes or complete reform,” Pew reported.
Further, “in nearly all countries surveyed, adults who see economic inequality as a very big problem are significantly more likely than others to favor significant changes to the economic system. … And in 31 of the 36 countries surveyed, people who say the current economic situation in their country is bad are more likely than those who say it’s good to favor significant changes.”
For the full report, click here and for the survey’s methodology, click here.
Director of The Raceless Gospel Initiative, an associate editor, host of the Good Faith Media podcast, “The Raceless Gospel” and author of Take Me to the Water: The Raceless Gospel as Baptismal Pedagogy for a Desegregated Church.