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July 10, 2026Public Opinion Quarterly

Welfare State Deservingness in the Era of Mass Higher Education

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Authors

SDSebastian DiessnerLeiden UniversityNDNiccolò DurazziUniversity of Modena and Reggio EmiliaFFFederico FilettiLondon School of Economics and Political Science

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Implication

Randomized trial reveals perceptions of welfare deservingness differ by education level, suggesting implications for policy support.

Key Points

  • This research aims to explore how the rise in university-educated workers affects perceptions of welfare state deservingness.
  • Original survey conducted with 3,916 respondents from the United States.
  • Combined a conjoint experiment with an information provision experiment to assess responses.
  • Analyzed perceptions of welfare assistance based on educational background.
  • University-educated individuals are perceived as less deserving of welfare support compared to non-university educated individuals.
  • Causal evidence indicates that need-based considerations influence these perceptions.
  • Findings suggest that strong labor market positions of university graduates reduce perceived needs for welfare.

Cite This Study

Diessner et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a508e5b6eeac72a437a1466https://doi.org/10.1093/poq/nfag056
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