New publication by Jens Olav Dahlgaard

Jens Olav Dahlgaard co-authors new publication on citizens’ attitudes to transparent and covert pay for politicians.

07/02/2019

The rewards of politicians are a key part of the implicit contract between politicians and citizens, and the effect of these rewards on democratic legitimacy and political recruitment is a central concern in public debate and democratic theory. Using a survey experiment, we show how citizens respond to hypothetical changes in politicians’ pay. The results indicate that citizens express lower levels of trust in the politicians when these politicians award themselves higher pecuniary rewards. However, our results also show that a devious strategy in which the rewards for politicians are less transparent ensures lower opposition from citizens than open and transparent strategies.

Reference:
Pedersen, L. H., Dahlgaard, J. O. and Pedersen, R. T. (2019), Rewarding the Top: Citizens' Opposition to Higher Pay for Politicians. Scandinavian Political Studies, 42: 118-137. doi:10.1111/1467-9477.12146

 

The page was last edited by: Department of International Economics, Government and Business // 07/02/2019