Economic Individualism, Perceived Fairness, and Policy Preference: A Cross-Cultural Comparison

Based on survey data from Germany, Estonia, China, Taiwan, Vietnam and Japan, this empirical analysis found substantial intercountry and interculture differences in economic individualism, perceived price fairness, and attitudes towards government policies involving price fairness and income inequality. Cultural differences are in line with the Hofstede dimension uncertainty avoidance. Several socio-demographic variables such as gender, major and religion demonstrated significant impacts. It is also revealed that economic individualism and fairness perception of price changes influence policy preferences. Taken together, our work showed that culture shapes individuals' fairness beliefs and perceptions, and these in turn affect their preferences for government economic policies regarding price fairness and inequality.