Subnational Variation in Perceptions of Inequality: Evidence from Viet Nam

Inequality influences socioeconomic and political outcomes. Beyond objective metrics, how people perceive inequality plays a crucial role. Yet, attitudes and perceptions of inequality remain understudied, especially outside high-income, Western settings. Some research suggests that formal and informal institutions, including traditions of governance and cultural attitudes, may influence variation in these attitudes and perceptions, across and within countries. This paper speaks to this gap, providing insights from Viet Nam and considering the unique historical institutional divergence of its northern and southern regions. The analysis draws on new data from a novel survey and a large-scale lab-in-the-field experiment with over 1,600 respondents from Hà Nam province in the north and Trà Vinh in the south. The results suggest that there are indeed differences in inequality perceptions in line with historical institutional legacies, even if subtle.