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Ideology and the Growth of Government

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  • Andrew Pickering
  • James Rockey

Abstract

We analyze the impact of ideology on the size of government. In a simple model the government sets redistribution and provision of public services according to the preferences of the median voter, for whom private consumption is a necessity. Ideology is defined on preferences for public services and the impact of ideology upon the size of government increases with mean income. In empirical work ideology is measured using data based on party manifestos. Much of the increases and divergence in government size observed across OECD countries can be explained by the interaction of ideology and mean income.

Suggested Citation

  • Andrew Pickering & James Rockey, 2007. "Ideology and the Growth of Government," Bristol Economics Discussion Papers 07/599, School of Economics, University of Bristol, UK.
    • Handle: RePEc:bri:uobdis:07/599
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    ideology; Wagner's law; size of government;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D72 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
    • H10 - Public Economics - - Structure and Scope of Government - - - General

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