Eastern Europe is no exception: acceptance of inequality and left–right politics

Abstract

Many scholars suggest that the left–right dimension can be simplified to a conflict over how much inequality should be accepted in society. Yet, studies on Eastern Europe indicate that acceptance of inequality is not associated with right-wing self-placements there, challenging the reach of the theory. Building on previous literature, this paper tests the proposition by measuring attitudes toward different inequalities separately (specifically in relation to class, gender, sexuality, and immigration/ethnicity), and examines their relationship with left–right self-placements. The paper also develops and tests a novel observable implication, namely that issue salience at the country level moderates the relationship between acceptance of an inequality and left–right self-placements. Using survey data from 27 European countries, multilevel regression models demonstrate that contrary to previous research, acceptance of inequality is associated with right-wing self-placements in both Eastern and Western Europe. Multilevel interaction effects furthermore demonstrate that country-level salience moderates this relationship.