Understanding Public Attitudes and Political Preferences in the Context of Automatization of the Labour Force

Understanding Public Attitudes and Political Preferences in the Context of Automatization of the Labour Force

The increased use of automation and digitization at the work place is an important part of the public and academic debate on the future role of work in modern societies and potential reforms of the welfare state. Whereas reports in the media focus on scenarios in which modern technologies produce dominantly mass unemployment, recent empirical evidence shows that the adoption of these technologies does not bring the end of labour but can lead to severe redistributive effects. Thus, there is dire need to understand public opinion and perception on the use and labour market effects of modern production technologies and to analyze which political preferences exist to counteract possible problems arising from automation. Accordingly, this project studies the individual attitudes regarding the effects of automation on the labour market using international surveys of representative population samples and randomized information traits. Doing this, we want to answer whether potential  labour market effects of automation and digitization lead to a causal effect on public opinion regarding redistributive policies as well as the design of social, education and labour market policy interventions.

Project members

Sebastian Blesse

Sebastian Blesse

Project Coordinator
Junior Research Associate

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Philipp Dörrenberg

Philipp Dörrenberg

Research Associate

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Contact

Sebastian Blesse
Junior Research Associate
Dr. Sebastian Blesse
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