Revaluation of the public sphere or further polarization?

Changes in public opinion during the COVID-19 pandemic

Authors

DOI: https://doi.org/10.6018/areas.655981
Keywords: Welfare attitudes, COVID-19 pandemics, social policies, public opinion, policy preferences

Abstract

This article studies changes in attitudes towards the welfare state and taxation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using surveys from the Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas, we test whether the emergence of the pandemic led to a greater preference for the expansion of the welfare state and its tax base, whether this hypothetical statist turn in public opinion was maintained as the pandemic progressed, and whether the attitudes of different ideological segments evolved in different directions, leading to a greater polarization of preferences along ideological lines. The paper aims to contribute to the literature on the evolution of attitudes towards the welfare state and fiscal policy and, more generally, to the study of the possible effects of exogenous threats and shocks on public opinion.

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Published
29-12-2025
How to Cite
Voces López, C., & Caínzos, M. (2025). Revaluation of the public sphere or further polarization? : Changes in public opinion during the COVID-19 pandemic. Areas. International Social Science Journal, (49), 119–142. https://doi.org/10.6018/areas.655981
Issue
No. 49 (2025): Número miscelánea
Section
Artículos

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