Explanations of Group Economic Outcomes

Previous studies of group economic voting have not examined how citizens explain group economic problems and how those causal explanations might affect the role of group economic conditions and the consequent formation of citizens' political preferences. This research addresses three questions: (a) How do citizens explain group economic predicaments? (b) Are there meaningful, systematic variations in the explanations offered by citizens for both individual and group economic problems that coincide with our understanding of differing group schemas, societal values, and economic predicaments? (c) Do citizens' explanations of group problems determine the effect that assessments of group economic predicaments have on political preferences? The research presented here indicates citizens are more likely to cite political or social factors to explain group economic problems. Members of disadvantaged groups are more likely to cite political explanations. Assessments of group economic well-being that are explained by reference to political factors have a larger effect on political preferences than those explained by social factors.