{
  "title": "LSE’s Andres Velasco on Identity Politics and Economics",
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  "summary": "Broadly shared identity can be the basis for the sense of shared destiny that is at the core of good politics, writes LSE’s Andres Velasco.",
  "sections": [
    {
      "heading": "Executive summary",
      "content": "- Broadly shared identity can be the basis for the sense of shared destiny that is at the core of good politics.\n- Populism is better understood as a style of politics that manipulates and exacerbates identity divisions for political gain, distinct from “economic populism.”\n- Identity politics helps explain why populism can thrive both where economic distress exists and where strong economic performance prevails.\n- Policy responses should acknowledge identity, pursue place-based remedies for communities harmed by deindustrialization, and practice a form of inclusive identity politics that builds shared national purpose."
    },
    {
      "heading": "Definitions and conceptual distinctions",
      "content": "- Classic economic definition of populism (Dornbusch and Edwards 1991): “an approach to economics that emphasizes growth and income redistribution and deemphasizes the risks of inflation and deficit finance, external constraints, and the reaction of economic agents to aggressive nonmarket policies.”\n- Political/populism (Müller 2016; Mudde and Rovira 2017): a style of politics centered on conflict, where a homogeneous “people” is pitted against “the elite,” minorities, immigrants, or foreigners; moralistic interpretation of politics (people = moral; others = immoral).\n- Triad characterizing populism: denial of complexity, anti-pluralism, and a personalist approach to political representation.\n- Populism as identity politics: “a way of doing politics in which conflict takes center stage” and “a kind of identity politics” — i.e., always us against them."
    },
    {
      "heading": "Empirical puzzles and evidence",
      "content": "- Rich-country narrative: populism driven by economic stagnation, worsening income distribution, and those left behind by technological change and globalization.\n- Cultural-backlash thesis: Inglehart and Norris (2016) find “the most consistent evidence supporting the cultural backlash thesis” in 31 European countries.\n- Emphasis on emerging-economy anomalies: right-wing populism has thrived in countries with strong economic performance, contrary to an “economic insecurity” narrative:\n  - India, the Philippines, and Turkey have grown at rates between 6.5 and 7 percent since 2010.\n  - Poland: average per capita growth rate of more than 4 percent since 1992.\n  - Czech Republic: unemployment is only 2.3 percent, the lowest rate in the European Union, and the economy grew 4.3 percent in 2017; nevertheless, populist parties attracted four of every ten voters in the most recent election — a tenfold increase in two decades.\n- Right-wing populism’s success is notable even where redistribution demand would predict left-wing surges; some populists’ policies may worsen income distribution while still attracting middle-class and working-class voters."
    },
    {
      "heading": "Identity theory and economic behavior (Akerlof and Kranton insights)",
      "content": "- People are willing to pay steep financial and nonfinancial costs to buttress their identity (example: US high schools; Akerlof and Kranton 2002).\n- Identity exhibits increasing social and political returns: as group share rises, social pressure to conform rises and individuals minimize distance from group norms.\n- Identity-driven politics enables non-economic weapons: toxic and divisive speech is used strategically by populists to mobilize bases and alter the size of competing identity groups; populists are “nasty by design.”"
    },
    {
      "heading": "Policy implications and recommendations",
      "content": "- Democratic politicians and policymakers must acknowledge that identity matters and that its effects can be harmful.\n- Place-based policies are essential:\n  - Deindustrialization and outward migration weaken local communities and shared identities; advising individuals simply to move overlooks community and identity costs.\n  - Place-based responses can help sustain communities, businesses, and shared identity.\n- Practice identity politics constructively:\n  - Leaders should cultivate broadly shared identities grounded in inclusive, universal values rather than exclusionary or racially superior narratives.\n  - National identity is “a continual contest about who belongs to the national we” (Michael Ignatieff); democratic politics should foster a shared sense of belonging based on noble universal values."
    },
    {
      "heading": "Key quotations and notable lines",
      "content": "- “Populism is a way of doing politics in which conflict takes center stage.”\n- “Identity politics is everywhere a struggle for the recognition of dignity.”\n- “Populists are not nasty by mistake; they are nasty by design.”\n- “National identity is a continual contest about who belongs to the national we.”"
    },
    {
      "heading": "References cited in the piece",
      "content": "- Akerlof, G., and R. Kranton. 2002. “Identity and Schooling: Some Lessons for the Economics of Education.” Journal of Economic Literature 40 (4): 1167–201.\n- Dornbusch, R., and S. Edwards. 1991. “The Macroeconomics of Populism in Latin America.” In The Macroeconomics of Populism in Latin America, edited by R. Dornbusch and S. Edwards.\n- Inglehart, R., and P. Norris. 2016. “Trump, Brexit, and the Rise of Populism: Economic Have-Nots and Cultural Backlash.” HKS Faculty Research Working Paper Series RWP16-026, Harvard Kennedy School, Cambridge, MA.\n- Mudde, C., and C. Rovira. 2017. Populism: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press.\n- Müller, J.-W. 2016. What Is Populism? Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania.\n\nLSE’s Andres Velasco on Identity Politics and Economics — IMF F&D\n\n---\n\n Content in this bundle\n\n- LSE’s Andres Velasco on Identity Politics and Economics – IMF F&D\n  - LSE’s Andres Velasco on Identity Politics and Economics – IMF F&D (Markdown version){rel=\"alternate\" type=\"text/markdown\"}\n  - LSE’s Andres Velasco on Identity Politics and Economics – IMF F&D (PDF){rel=\"external\" type=\"application/pdf\"}\n- الاحتفاء بالهوية الإنسانية\n  - الاحتفاء بالهوية الإنسانية (Markdown version){rel=\"alternate\" type=\"text/markdown\"}\n  - الاحتفاء بالهوية الإنسانية (PDF){rel=\"external\" type=\"application/pdf\"}\n- Embanderados con la identidad ● Finanzas y Desarrollo ● Junio de 2020\n  - Embanderados con la identidad ● Finanzas y Desarrollo ● Junio de 2020 (Markdown version){rel=\"alternate\" type=\"text/markdown\"}\n  - Embanderados con la identidad ● Finanzas y Desarrollo ● Junio de 2020 (PDF){rel=\"external\" type=\"application/pdf\"}\n- 接受身份 - 《金融与发展》 2020年6月号 - 国际货币基金组织季刊\n  - 接受身份 - 《金融与发展》 2020年6月号 - 国际货币基金组织季刊 (Markdown version){rel=\"alternate\" type=\"text/markdown\"}\n  - 接受身份 - 《金融与发展》 2020年6月号 - 国际货币基金组织季刊 (PDF){rel=\"external\" type=\"application/pdf\"}\n\n---\n\nSource: https://www.imf.org/en/publications/fandd/issues/2020/06/andres-velasco-lse-identity-politics-and-economics"
    }
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    "Authors: Andres Velasco",
    "Published: June 1, 2020",
    "Broadly shared identity can be the basis for the sense of shared destiny that is at the core of good politics.",
    "Populism is better understood as a style of politics that manipulates and exacerbates identity divisions for political gain, distinct from “economic populism.”",
    "Identity politics helps explain why populism can thrive both where economic distress exists and where strong economic performance prevails.",
    "Policy responses should acknowledge identity, pursue place-based remedies for communities harmed by deindustrialization, and practice a form of inclusive identity politics that builds shared national purpose.",
    "Classic economic definition of populism (Dornbusch and Edwards 1991): “an approach to economics that emphasizes growth and income redistribution and deemphasizes the risks of inflation and deficit finance, external constraints, and the reaction of economic agents to aggressive nonmarket policies.”",
    "Political/populism (Müller 2016; Mudde and Rovira 2017): a style of politics centered on conflict, where a homogeneous “people” is pitted against “the elite,” minorities, immigrants, or foreigners; moralistic interpretation of politics (people = moral; others = immoral).",
    "Triad characterizing populism: denial of complexity, anti-pluralism, and a personalist approach to political representation.",
    "Populism as identity politics: “a way of doing politics in which conflict takes center stage” and “a kind of identity politics” — i.e., always us against them.",
    "Rich-country narrative: populism driven by economic stagnation, worsening income distribution, and those left behind by technological change and globalization.",
    "Cultural-backlash thesis: Inglehart and Norris (2016) find “the most consistent evidence supporting the cultural backlash thesis” in 31 European countries.",
    "Emphasis on emerging-economy anomalies: right-wing populism has thrived in countries with strong economic performance, contrary to an “economic insecurity” narrative:",
    "Right-wing populism’s success is notable even where redistribution demand would predict left-wing surges; some populists’ policies may worsen income distribution while still attracting middle-class and working-class voters.",
    "People are willing to pay steep financial and nonfinancial costs to buttress their identity (example: US high schools; Akerlof and Kranton 2002).",
    "Identity exhibits increasing social and political returns: as group share rises, social pressure to conform rises and individuals minimize distance from group norms.",
    "Identity-driven politics enables non-economic weapons: toxic and divisive speech is used strategically by populists to mobilize bases and alter the size of competing identity groups; populists are “nasty by design.”",
    "Democratic politicians and policymakers must acknowledge that identity matters and that its effects can be harmful.",
    "Place-based policies are essential:",
    "Practice identity politics constructively:",
    "“Populism is a way of doing politics in which conflict takes center stage.”",
    "“Identity politics is everywhere a struggle for the recognition of dignity.”",
    "“Populists are not nasty by mistake; they are nasty by design.”",
    "“National identity is a continual contest about who belongs to the national we.”",
    "Akerlof, G., and R. Kranton. 2002. “Identity and Schooling: Some Lessons for the Economics of Education.” Journal of Economic Literature 40 (4): 1167–201.",
    "Dornbusch, R., and S. Edwards. 1991. “The Macroeconomics of Populism in Latin America.” In The Macroeconomics of Populism in Latin America, edited by R. Dornbusch and S. Edwards.",
    "Inglehart, R., and P. Norris. 2016. “Trump, Brexit, and the Rise of Populism: Economic Have-Nots and Cultural Backlash.” HKS Faculty Research Working Paper Series RWP16-026, Harvard Kennedy School, Cambridge, MA.",
    "Mudde, C., and C. Rovira. 2017. Populism: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press.",
    "Müller, J.-W. 2016. What Is Populism? Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania.",
    "**LSE’s Andres Velasco on Identity Politics and Economics – IMF F&D**",
    "**الاحتفاء بالهوية الإنسانية**",
    "**Embanderados con la identidad ● Finanzas y Desarrollo ● Junio de 2020**",
    "**接受身份 - 《金融与发展》 2020年6月号 - 国际货币基金组织季刊**"
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