Political scientists have long debated self-interest, much research investigating whether voter motivations are self-interested or sociotropic, i.e. sympathetic to certain groups. However, there have been few studies of self-interest and sociotropy and social policy motivations.

In our paper, we conduct two survey experiments with British samples which attempt to establish the conditions in which self-interested and sociotropic motivations are important in social policy. A first experiment concerns a pensions reform which offers a means-tested supplement at different income levels. A second experiment uses a conjoint design and concerns a cost-of-living payment which is targeted at different occupations and varies income eligibility and payment levels.

Voters are indeed self-interested, yet sociotropic motivations are more nuanced. In experiment one, respondents tend to have higher sociotropic motivation when the pension reform benefits a wider section of the population. There is notable ideological heterogeneity, social conservatives being disproportionately opposed to the reform which only benefits those with the lowest incomes.

But in experiment two and contrary to our pre-registered hypotheses, respondents tend to have higher sociotropic motivation when the cost-of-living payment only benefits a lower-paid section of the target group. There is limited ideological heterogeneity, the self-defined motivations of ‘deservingness’ and ‘hardworkingness’ being more salient and cutting across ideological sub-groups. We conclude that different sociotropic motivations may reflect the targets of the measures. When the target is broad, voters have broader sociotropic motivation. When the target is narrow, voters have narrower sociotropic motivations.