Public Opinion about the Welfare State in Latin America:.x000d.Subjective Beliefs, Objective Interest, and Preferences for Redistribution.

Over the past two decades, market reforms and state retrenchment across Latin America have led to varying levels of support for.x000d.state involvement in the provision of welfare and the alleviation of income. Existing theories cannot account for this variation. Both class-power and rationalist explanations predict stability in preferences for.x000d.redistribution. Moreover, given that they focus on individuals' position in the economic structure as the main factor shaping.x000d.preferences, these accounts are unlikely to be useful in the developing world, where economic volatility constantly alters individuals'.x000d.structural positions. I argue that in such contexts, the link between structural-based, objective interests and preferences for redistribution is weakened. Instead, individuals will tend to rely on subjective beliefs to inform their preferences for redistribution; in particular, I focus on beliefs about economic prospects and about general social mobility and equality of opportunity. I carry out an initial probe of my theory using data collected through in-depth interviews with citizens of Peru. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]