Abstract
IneqPer sets out to analyze whether, and to what extent, people perceive inequalities related to socio-economic position, gender and immigrant status as a relevant societal issue, how they perceive their own position in society in relation to such inequalities, and which individual and contextual factors correlate to people’s perceptions of inequality. The topic is approached by combining both inequalities related to socio-economic status (e.g., wealth, income or social connections) and group-based inequalities (based on group belonging such as being men, women, immigrants, or natives). Even though structural inequalities are vast and growing in most societies, it is not clear how fully people understand the extent to which cleavages exist. There are well-known examples of highly unequal nations where a large number of citizens do not grasp the actual level of inequality. The project aims to: - develop a survey for a representative sample of the Italian adult population; - design and implement survey experiments that assess social (mis)perceptions and test how they can be challenged; - analyze the main determinants of (mis)perceptions. The main purpose of the survey is to collect empirical data on perceptions for descriptive and analytical purposes. The survey was conducted from November 2024 to February 2025 on 12000 respondents. The sample is quota-based and is representative of the Italian adult population for gender, age, education, employment status, and macro-regions. As far as expected results is concerned, providing factual information may significantly correct misperceptions, especially among more educated individuals. However, resistance to information may persist among ideologically committed individuals (e.g., those strongly aligned right-wing parties). Finally, some interventions may have no effect or even provoke reactance (e.g., when inequality is framed in moral or emotional terms), particularly among high-status respondents.
Project details
Unibo Team Leader: Debora Mantovani
Unibo involved Department/s:
Dipartimento di Scienze Politiche e Sociali
Coordinator:
Università degli Studi di PAVIA(Italy)
Total Unibo Contribution: Euro (EUR) 28.467,00
Project Duration in months: 24
Start Date:
30/11/2023
End Date:
28/02/2026
