Political and economic ideology from the perspective of public economics: Trust in public institutions and public finance morale

The factors that determine economic growth and development are not only economic but also political and fiscal. These include trust in public institutions, tax morale and benefit morale. Trust in public institutions expands the space of policy makers and enables more efficient and long-term policies. Trust in public institutions also ensures the continuity and legitimacy of democracy, which is an essential building block of a developed economy. Trust in public institutions, tax morale and benefit morale are all influenced by many political, social, and economic components. One of these components is the ideological orientation of individuals. In this context, trust in public institutions, tax morale and benefit morale in Europe are discussed from the perspective of ideological orientations and the relations between them are examined. In the first chapter of this thesis, the differences between left-wing and right-wing factions in trust in public institutions are investigated. Additionally, the possible role of the incumbent party' political orientation is also examined. According to our results, generally, right-wing supporters compared to centrist voters, and centrist voters compared to left-wing supporters have more confidence in public institutions. These results hold when right-wing and centrist parties are in power. However, when left-wing parties are in charge, left-wing supporters compared to centrist voters, and centrist voters compared to right-wing supporters have more confidence in public institutions. The second chapter of this thesis examines the tax and benefit morale of left-wing and right-wing individuals. Our results suggest that right-wing individuals have lower tax morale compared to left-wing individuals. On the other hand, compared to right-wing individuals, left-wing individuals have lower benefit morale.