Multidimensionality in merit attitudes: The role of hard work, skills, and social connections in Europe

Attitudinal scholarship on values related to merit often identifies three key dimensions that include: attitudes towards hard work, attitudes towards skill, and attitudes towards social connections. In this paper, we examine how individuals evaluate the importance of these three dimensions simultaneously and from a multidimensional framework. We apply Latent Class Analysis (LCAs) on data from round 9 of the European Social Survey (ESS). We find three distinct clusters with the largest, exhibiting multidimensionality in beliefs, specifically on the dimension related to the importance of social connections. Individuals in this cluster identify the importance of hard work and skill, but also the importance of social connections in employment. Moreover, cluster membership is also related to class status with individuals from higher class backgrounds more likely to be associated with clusters that adhere to standard meritocratic values on all three dimensions.