Document Type
Dataset
DOI
https://doi.org/10.32855/dataset.2026.02.041
Production/Collection Date
February 2025
Production/Collection Location
Online Sample, United States
Depositor
Kelly Bergstrand
Deposit Date
2-2-2026
Data Type
Survey experiment data
Abstract
Recently, some states have passed laws to limit the size of campaign contributions, such as a voter-approved ballot measure in Maine targeting independent political action committees (e.g., super PACs). Few studies investigate super PAC reform, and our study is the first to test Maine's novel form of regulation. Additionally, we evaluate the appearance of quid pro quo corruption: a critical factor for campaign finance reform to survive legal challenges. To do so, we conducted two experimental studies with 1131 respondents. First, we examined whether the size of donations affected perceptions of political corruption. We find that larger donations, especially those $5000 or more, increased the perceived likelihood of quid pro quo corruption. Second, we investigated whether a $5000 cap on campaign contributions to independent PACs affected attitudes toward government. We find that a donation cap reduced perceptions that government would be improperly influenced, controlled by special interests, corrupt, or crooked. The cap also reduced expectations that quid pro quo corruption would occur between donors and elected officials. Additionally, the $5000 cap had several positive effects on perceptions, including that government will serve public interests. This suggests that laws limiting campaign contributions could be effective at restoring public confidence in government.
Disciplines
Sociology
Publication Date
2-2-2026
Language
English
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Bergstrand, Kelly and Robertson, Cristopher T., "The $5000 Campaign Contribution Cap: Americans’ Perceptions of Trust and Corruption" (2026). Social Work Datasets. 2.
https://mavmatrix.uta.edu/socialwork_datasets/2
Codebook