Understanding Economic Justice Attitudes in Two Countries: Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan

Analyzing data from the 2007 Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan Inequality Survey, I identify and compare the determinants of economic justice attitudes in two formerly similar majority-Muslim nations that are now distinguished almost exclusively by their dissimilar economic circumstances following the collapse of the Soviet Union. In Kazakhstan, where the economy is growing rapidly, the important factors predicting economic egalitarianism are connected to people's perceived ability to do well in the future. In contrast, in Kyrgyzstan, which has stagnated in the post-Soviet era, people's immediate economic vulnerability predicts egalitarianism, while their economic prospects are irrelevant. Finally, the effect of several factors on support for egalitarianism appears impervious to the prevailing economic winds: religious orthodoxy, the urban vs. rural divide, and membership in a historically privileged ethnic group. These patterns reflect both the commonalities in the two countries' histories, demography, and religion and their divergent economic trajectories since the collapse of the USSR.