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The Effects of Efficacy Perceptions and Poverty Attributions on Public Support for Development Aid

Gregory D. B. Boese1 and Bobbie N. J. Macdonald2

1Simon Fraser University 2London School of Economics and Political Science

Understanding the determinants of support for development aid can help effectively focus development education programs and promote critical engagement with development issues

CONCLUSION #1: Perceptions of injustice, perceptions of inherent aid efficacy, and identification with the cause predict support for development aid.

CONCLUSION #2: Religiosity predicts support for development aid directly and indirectly via increased perceptions of injustice and identification with the cause. Liberal ideology predicts support for development aid directly and indirectly via increased perceptions of injustice.

CONCLUSION #3: Overall, respondents attributed poverty most strongly to war and conflict, government corruption, and disease, while poverty was most weakly attributed to fate, lack of ability, and lack of effort. Attributions to external uncontrollable causes (e.g., disease) predicted support for development aid indirectly via increased perceptions of injustice, perceptions of inherent aid efficacy, and identification with the cause. Attributions to internal uncontrollable causes (e.g., lack of ability) predicted support for development aid indirectly via decreased perceptions of injustice. 

CONCLUSION #4: Beliefs about how well aid organizations and recipients use development aid does NOT predict support for development aid, but trust that aid organizations and recipients will use aid effectively does predict support for development aid.

n = 157 university students; χ2(3) = 3.70, p = .296, CFI = 1.00, RMSEA = .039 (90% CI: < .001, .15), SRMR = .025.

Dashed lines between exogenous and mediator variables indicate mediation was non-significant. Additional paths tested in the model were excluded from the figure if non-significant. *p < .05, **p < .01

Support for AidEfficacy of use by organizations E.g., A lot of aid is wasted by aid organizations.

.05

Efficacy of use by individuals E.g., A lot of aid is wasted by aid beneficiaries.

.11

Trust of organizations E.g., I trust that aid organizations who distribute aid in developing countries will do so effectively.

.48**

Trust of individuals E.g., I trust the people in developing countries will use the aid they are given effectively.

.40**

While we used ‘inherent aid efficacy’ in our path model (e.g., “Aid is an effective way to reduce global poverty“), future research should investigate the multi-faceted nature of this construct:(1) Inherent efficacy(2) Beliefs about how well

organizations or individuals actually use the aid they are given effectively.

(3) Trust that organizations or individuals will use the aid they are given effectively.

1

2

3

4

5 What do you think causes poverty?1 = Does not at all; 3 = Moderately; 5 =

Extremely

1

2

3

4

5 What do you think causes poverty?1 = Does not at all; 3 = Moderately; 5 =

Extremely

Note: Pearson’s r reported. *p < .05, **p < .01