Individuals reject economic inequality if they believe it to result from unequal opportunities. This paper argues income gaps between groups determined at birth, based on sex, race, or family background, can serve people as an indication of unequal opportunities. Findings from a survey experiment show Americans underestimate these gaps. When confronted with accurate information, participants correct their perceptions and adjust redistributive preferences. A follow-up survey finds these effects to last for over one year. In sum, this paper contributes to political economy scholarship that links individual preferences to objective characteristics of the income distribution. Focusing on income gaps offers new ways to explore the political consequences of structural economic change.

中文翻译：

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介意收入差距？信息对再分配偏好的持久影响的实验证据

如果个人认为经济不平等是由机会不平等造成的，他们会拒绝。本文认为，基于性别，种族或家庭背景而在出生时确定的群体之间的收入差距可以为人们提供机会不平等的迹象。调查实验的结果表明，美国人低估了这些差距。当面对准确的信息时，参与者会纠正他们的看法并调整重新分配的偏好。一项后续调查发现这些影响可持续超过一年。总而言之，本文为政治经济学研究做出了贡献，该研究将个人偏好与收入分配的客观特征联系起来。关注收入差距提供了探索结构性经济变化的政治后果的新方法。