New inequalities, new cleavages? An international comparison of attitudes in four fields of inequality

Abstract

The article investigates the socio-structural foundations of attitudes toward inequality in light of new issues of social conflict. Four axes of inequality are taken into account: (1) top-bottom inequalities, which focus on economic resource distributions, (2) inside-outside inequalities, which relate to territorial access, migration, and membership, (3) us-them inequalities, which encompass social recognition of diversity, and (4) today-tomorrow inequalities, which focus on issues of intergenerational equity and environmental sustainability. The article quantitatively assesses the cleavage structure in each area and tests expectations on relationships found in the literature. The central question is: are attitudes polarized and associated with socio-structural characteristics in such a way that one could speak of cleavages? Based on the European Social Survey from 2016, the attitudinal structures are examined descriptively as well as with factor and regression analyses for a selected group of European countries (Sweden, France, Italy, Germany, Poland, and Hungary). The key finding is, first, that no two-dimensional distribution of attitudes is evident in which the old, economic inequalities are simply opposed to the new inequalities; and, second, that strong cleavages can be found only in some countries on some issues. The most consistent socio-structural cleavage forms around the topic of migration.