Field study suggests wealthy less willing to tax rich when poor people are around

(Phys.org)—A study conducted by a researcher with Harvard University suggests that wealthy people are less likely to support income redistribution through a tax on the very rich after having recently been exposed to an obviously poor person. In her paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Melissa Sands describes a study she carried out using volunteers in wealthy neighborhoods, what she found and her opinions regarding the impact it could be having on domestic policy decisions.