Gimpelson and Treisman: Misperceiving Inequality
The Point: People's perceptions about inequality don't match up with economists' measurements of inequality. Surveys tell us that people tend to underestimate the amount of inequality in their society. Furthermore, it seems that a person's preferences for redistribution are more closely correlated with their perceptions than they are with measured estimates of inequality. The authors contend that such finding are extremely relevant in discussions that link specific types of p
