What Do I Get? Positive Externalities and Support for Public Investment

Infrastructural shortfalls and unequal access to basic services have turned public investment into a central site of political contestation in developing countries. Funding such policies requires higher taxation and the formation of coalitions centered on middle- and upper-income citizens. These groups often opt out of public services, which complicates redistributive efforts. When are middle- and upper-class citizens willing to fund goods that primarily benefit the poor? I argue that they may do so if they perceive positive externalities aligned with their ideological predispositions. Evidence from a vignette experiment on a housing program in Argentina shows that middle- and upper-class citizens aligned with right-wing ideologies are more likely to support and contribute to tax increases when the policy is framed as promoting productivity growth, whereas left-leaning citizens are less sensitive to the specific framing. These findings shed light on how such messages can shape support for public investment across ideological lines.