Paying for Defence in High-Threat Environments: Political and Economic Divides over Defence Spending Expansions in Three Ex-Axis Countries

This study explores public attitudes towards increases in defence spending and potential options for funding the associated costs in three former Axis countries: Germany, Italy, and Japan. Building on existing scholarship, I hypothesize that individuals’ political orientations and economic status shape their attitudes towards defence spending and their funding preferences. To test this, I conducted an original online survey—including both observational and conjoint components—in the countries in question. The results highlight the relevance of respondents’ left–right self-placement in shaping divisions over defence spending: Right-leaning individuals are more supportive of increased defence expenditure than those on the left. They also indicate that left–right ideology influences funding preferences, particularly in the dichotomy between taxing high-income groups and increasing government borrowing. By contrast, individuals’ economic status was not associated with their funding preferences, suggesting that defence policy is regarded as a sociotropic issue, rather than an egotropic one.