A Longitudinal Analysis of Personal Economic Anxiety, Concern for the National Economy, and Distrust of Government Spending

Abstract

We conduct a longitudinal assessment of the effect of personal and national economic anxiety on distrust of government spending using the American National Election Studies, 1988 to 2016. Over the long haul, we find that national economic anxiety is a consistent predictor of approval of government spending. In recent times, we also observe an increasing saliency of personal economic anxiety when it comes to attitudes about government spending. After the Great Recession, we observe a convergence of personal concern and national concern that is emblematic of vast change in the political landscape.