Term
| What is "Social Welfare"? |
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Definition
| Social welfare consists of unilateral transfers of resources outside economic markets, distributed based on need rather than market mechanisms. These transfers are delivered by both public and private actors to address social needs through rights, claims, and democratic allocation. Social welfare operates in a social sphere fundamentally different from economic markets, which function through price mechanisms, profit motives, and voluntary exchange. |
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Term
| What are the major periods and policies of US welfare state development? |
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Definition
| The US welfare state evolved through six major periods: Colonial Era through 1900s with poor laws and Civil War pensions, Progressive Era with mothers' pensions and workers' compensation, 1930s New Deal establishing Social Security and unemployment insurance, 1960s War on Poverty creating Medicare and Medicaid, 1990s welfare reform introducing TANF with work requirements, and 2020 COVID response with temporary expansions. Each period reflected distinct economic and social pressures shaping policy development. These transformations demonstrate how welfare programs respond to crises while encoding values about deservingness. |
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Term
| What major political, social, and economic trends were occurring during each period? |
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Definition
| Each welfare period responded to specific crises and social changes. The Colonial Era addressed Civil War aftermath and industrialization, the Progressive Era tackled workplace hazards and urbanization, the New Deal responded to Great Depression unemployment, the War on Poverty addressed persistent poverty amid prosperity, and the 1990s reform reflected concerns about dependency and government spending. Most recently, the 2020 COVID crisis prompted temporary safety net expansions. |
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Term
| How did conceptions of poverty and deservingness shape welfare policies? |
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Definition
| American welfare policy has consistently distinguished between deserving and undeserving poor, with Colonial poor laws separating the impotent poor from able-bodied poor and Progressive programs excluding unmarried mothers and women of color. The New Deal created a two-tier system where social insurance carried no stigma while public assistance was stigmatized as charity. The 1990s welfare reform explicitly reintroduced behavioral requirements, essentially requiring recipients to prove deservingness through employment. |
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Term
| What role did race and gender play in welfare state development? |
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Definition
| Race and gender fundamentally organized the American welfare state, creating hierarchies that privileged white men while marginalizing women and people of color. The New Deal excluded agricultural and domestic workers, categories encompassing many Black workers, creating a racialized two-tier system. As Black women increasingly accessed AFDC, political rhetoric shifted to stigmatize the program, demonstrating how racism and sexism intersected to undermine support for programs serving women of color. |
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Term
| What is the difference between residual and institutional approaches to welfare? |
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Definition
| The residual approach treats welfare as a temporary emergency intervention only when family and markets fail, characterized by means-testing and stigma to discourage dependency. The institutional approach views welfare as a normal function of modern society, providing universal services as citizenship rights without stigma. The United States generally follows the residual model for programs like TANF, while Social Security reflects institutional principles. |
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Term
| How does the political economy perspective explain welfare state development? |
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Definition
| Political economy examines welfare through power relations and class conflict rather than humanitarian motivations, arguing that programs emerged from struggles between capital and labor during moments of crisis. Welfare represents compromises between competing interests, functioning to stabilize capitalism by maintaining consumer demand and preventing revolutionary uprisings. This perspective explains variations in generosity through examining labor movement strength, political institutions, and business power. |
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Term
| What is path dependency, and how does it affect welfare policy? |
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Definition
| Path dependency describes how initial policy choices create self-reinforcing patterns that make alternatives increasingly difficult to pursue over time. The New Deal's two-tier structure, dividing social insurance from public assistance, created constituencies and institutions that perpetuate this approach despite reform pressures. Even major reforms like the 1996 welfare reform followed established paths, maintaining the distinction between earned insurance and stigmatized assistance. |
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Term
| How do feminist scholars critique traditional welfare state analysis? |
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Definition
| Feminist scholars challenged traditional welfare analysis for gender-blind assumptions that took male workers as the norm and ignored how programs reproduce patriarchal relations. Welfare states built on a male breadwinner model tie benefits to continuous employment patterns more characteristic of men's work histories, while subjecting women's programs to moral surveillance. Feminist analysis revealed how welfare regulates women's unpaid care work while failing to value or compensate it adequately. |
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Term
| What are the main arguments for and against Universal Basic Income? |
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Definition
| UBI proponents argue it eliminates stigma, provides security amid automation and precarious employment, and simplifies bureaucracy by replacing means-tested programs with universal payments. Critics cite massive costs requiring politically infeasible tax increases, concerns that UBI could justify eliminating existing targeted programs, and worries that cash alone cannot address healthcare, housing, and education needs. The debate reflects fundamental questions about the future of work and whether economic security should depend on labor market participation. |
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Term
| How has welfare reform affected poverty and inequality? |
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Definition
| Welfare reform dramatically reduced caseloads through time limits and work requirements, but failed to reduce poverty, instead shifting families from non-working to working poor without adequate safety net support. Many former recipients found only low-wage jobs without benefits, and the number of families in deep poverty increased as they lost cash assistance without gaining stable employment. TANF's block grant structure proved inadequate during recessions, and the reform disproportionately harmed vulnerable families facing barriers to employment. |
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Term
| What is the relationship between mass incarceration and the welfare state? |
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Definition
| Mass incarceration represents a shift from social welfare to a carceral state that manages poverty through confinement rather than support, with both systems increasingly regulating poor people's behavior. The expansion of imprisonment occurred alongside welfare retrenchment, disproportionately affecting communities of color through interconnected systems where criminal records create barriers to employment and welfare eligibility. This transformation represents a fundamental policy choice to invest in punishment over prevention and support. |
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Term
| How do social workers navigate ethical dilemmas in means-tested programs? |
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Definition
| Social workers face tensions between professional commitments to client self-determination and program requirements that enforce behavioral compliance and limit access. They must balance respecting client autonomy against mandates that may harm wellbeing, such as pushing clients into employment when education would be more beneficial. Social workers employ strategies including creative compliance, quiet resistance, and combining direct practice with advocacy to maximize client well-being within severe constraints. |
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Term
| Why is an understanding of social welfare policy important for direct practitioners? |
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Definition
| Understanding social welfare policy is essential for direct practitioners because it enables multi-level practice that connects individual client needs to broader systemic interventions. Social workers must navigate the policy landscape to effectively advocate for clients, connect them to appropriate resources, and identify structural barriers that shape their experiences. Additionally, policy knowledge empowers practitioners to challenge unjust systems and work toward social change that addresses root causes rather than only treating symptoms. |
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Term
| What are the differences between the conservative and progressive views of the welfare state? |
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Definition
| Conservatives view welfare as potentially creating dependency, arguing that government assistance can discourage work and personal responsibility, leading them to favor strict eligibility requirements that limit access. In contrast, progressives believe society is strengthened when everyone is uplifted, viewing welfare as a necessary mechanism to provide equity and reduce structural barriers. While conservatives emphasize individual responsibility and minimal government intervention, progressives see welfare as a tool for achieving social solidarity and addressing systemic inequalities. |
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Term
| What are Richard Titmus', T. H. Marshall's, and Alexis de Tocqueville's views of social needs and the welfare state? |
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Definition
| T. H. Marshall argued that citizenship rights should expand to include social rights, contending that welfare's central function is to supersede the market by redistributing goods and services to produce outcomes the market would not generate independently, thereby creating social solidarity. Richard Titmus examined how welfare systems reflect different conceptions of social obligation and the proper boundaries between market and non-market allocation of resources. Alexis de Tocqueville expressed concerns about the potential for welfare to undermine individual initiative and community-based mutual aid, fearing state provision might weaken voluntary associations that bind democratic societies together. |
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Term
| What is the Marxist/critical view of welfare state development? |
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Definition
| What is the Marxist/critical view of welfare state development? |
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Term
| What are the major theoretical perspectives on the development of the US welfare state? |
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Definition
| The major theoretical perspectives of development of the US welfare state are structural-functional, power-resources, and state-centric approaches. The structural-functional perspective argues that economic development and industrialization create similar welfare needs across societies, with welfare states emerging as functional responses to modernization that drive convergence across countries. The power-resources perspective emphasizes that working-class mobilization through parties and unions drives welfare expansion, with power distribution explaining cross-national variation, while the state-centric perspective focuses on how government institutions, policymakers, and elites drive welfare policy development through institutional dynamics and elite interests. |
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Term
| Describe Neil's policy analysis framework. |
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Definition
| Neil's framework examines social welfare policies through four key dimensions: social allocations (how benefits are distributed and what eligibility criteria determine access), provisions offered (the form benefits take, such as cash, vouchers, or in-kind goods), delivery methods (how benefits are administered and delivered to recipients), and financing mechanisms (the sources of funding, including taxes, mandates, or fees). This systematic approach allows analysts to understand who receives what benefits, how they receive them, and who ultimately pays for social programs. The framework reveals how design choices in each dimension create different equity outcomes and political dynamics. |
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Term
| What are the differences between public and private welfare? |
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Definition
| Public welfare is funded primarily through taxes, administered by government agencies, and features strict eligibility requirements based on income and categorical criteria, providing broad reach with legally guaranteed entitlements but facing greater bureaucratic complexity and stigmatization. Private welfare relies on donations, grants, and private contributions administered by nonprofits and foundations, offering more flexible eligibility and faster, innovative responses but suffering from inconsistent funding and selective service provision. While public programs like SNAP and Medicaid ensure steady funding for large populations, private assistance through food banks and shelters fills gaps but cannot guarantee universal coverage or stable resources. |
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Term
| How does the US welfare state compare to other countries? |
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Definition
| When measured by gross public social expenditure alone, the United States appears less generous than many European welfare states, but accounting for tax expenditures, mandated private benefits, and net measures dramatically changes this ranking. The U.S. relies heavily on employer-based benefits and tax subsidies rather than direct public provision, creating a "hidden welfare state" that operates through mechanisms like the mortgage interest deduction and employer-sponsored health insurance exclusion. Unlike social-democratic countries such as Sweden that emphasize universal public provision and trust in citizens, the U.S. welfare state is characterized by means-testing, work requirements, and market-based delivery that reflects its liberal, residual approach. |
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Term
| What are the characteristics of the major US social welfare policies? |
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Definition
| Major U.S. social welfare policies include Social Security (a contributory social insurance program providing retirement and disability benefits), Medicare and Medicaid (health insurance for elderly and low-income populations respectively), SNAP (food assistance with strict income eligibility), and TANF (time-limited cash assistance with work requirements). These programs vary significantly in their universality, with Social Security operating as near-universal social insurance while TANF exemplifies means-tested, conditional assistance that reflects deservingness criteria. The U.S. system is fragmented across federal, state, and local levels, combining entitlement programs with discretionary spending and increasingly incorporating neoliberal elements like privatization, marketization, and conditionality. |
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Term
| What are some of the unintended consequences and behavioral (dis)incentives of the welfare state? |
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Definition
| Welfare programs can create work disincentives when benefits phase out rapidly as earnings increase, effectively imposing high implicit tax rates that trap recipients in dependency rather than encouraging employment. Benefit formulas and eligibility rules shape retirement timing decisions, with individuals strategically responding to Social Security regulations regarding when to claim benefits. Additionally, means-tested programs may encourage underreporting of income, discourage marriage (the "marriage penalty"), or lead to strategic household formation decisions that maximize benefit eligibility rather than reflect genuine preferences. |
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Term
| How are social welfare programs financed? |
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Definition
| Social welfare flows through four distinct financing channels: direct expenditures (traditional government spending through appropriated funds for programs like SNAP and Medicaid), tax expenditures (indirect spending through deductions, exclusions, and credits such as the mortgage interest deduction and EITC), regulatory mandates (publicly mandated private transfers like employer health insurance requirements and inclusionary zoning), and voluntary contributions (charitable giving and foundation grants that are tax-subsidized but privately directed). These channels have different visibility levels, with direct expenditures facing the most political scrutiny while tax expenditures and regulatory mandates operate as "hidden welfare" that escapes conventional budget measures. The choice of financing mechanism significantly affects who benefits, with tax expenditures disproportionately favoring higher-income households while direct spending typically targets lower-income populations. |
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Term
| How have documented and undocumented immigrants been considered by the welfare state during each era? |
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Definition
| Throughout U.S. history, eligibility for social welfare benefits has been tied to concepts of settlement, citizenship, and deservingness that have systematically excluded or limited immigrant access. The 1996 welfare reform particularly restricted immigrant eligibility for federal benefits, distinguishing between different immigrant categories and imposing waiting periods even for legal permanent residents. Contemporary debates continue to center on questions of which programs (cash assistance, healthcare, education, emergency services) should be available to which immigrant groups (refugees, legal residents, undocumented individuals), reflecting ongoing tensions between humanitarian concerns, fiscal considerations, and nativist political pressures. |
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Term
| What major political, social, and economic trends were occurring during each period? |
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Definition
| The Poor Law era coincided with the Civil War and Reconstruction, establishing veterans' pensions and the Freedmen's Bureau, while the Progressive Era addressed industrialization's social costs through early labor protections and child labor laws. The New Deal responded to the Great Depression's economic collapse with unprecedented federal intervention, and the War on Poverty emerged during 1960s civil rights movements and relative prosperity. The 1990s Neoliberal Shift reflected marketization, privatization, conditionality, and managerialism that made programs function increasingly like markets, while COVID-19 brought a temporary reversal of retrenchment through emergency expansions. |
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Term
| How did the welfare reform of 1996 affect the eligibility of documented immigrants arriving after 1996 for welfare benefits such as SSI, Food Stamps, and TANF? |
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Definition
| It imposed restrictions on immigrants arriving after 1996. These immigrants were barred from receiving benefits like supplemental security income SSI and food stamps for the first five years they resided in the U.S. TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families) was also affected, as states were given the discretion to determine immigrant eligibility. |
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Term
| Two reasons why a fundamental understanding of social welfare policy is important for direct service social workers?. |
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Definition
Ensure they are guiding clients effectively through the complex systems of benefit eligibility.
- Advocate for policies or changes that would better serve their clients’ needs, based on an understanding of the economic and social trade-offs embedded in policy decisions
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Term
| What is the difference between the institutional and the residual view of social welfare? |
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Definition
- Institutional- sees social welfare as a necessary, integrated part of a healthy society, providing services to all citizens as a matter of right.
- Residual- welfare as a safety net, used only when other systems like family or the market fail. |
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Term
| What are the differences between conservative vs. progressive views of the causes of social problems? |
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Definition
Progressive tend to support more expansive programs to address economic inequality and social justice, while conservatives often focus on individual responsibility and limiting public spending. Also, a debate on social welfare programs inherently improves outcomes...Conservative Views: Social problems reflect individual fault, such as bad choices or personal dysfunction
Progressive view: Social problems are seen as institutional faults, like barriers to access and a lack of opportunities. |
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Term
| What were the economic developments during the periods of growth and maturation of the US welfare state? |
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Definition
| - The growth phase coincided with the expansion of industrialization, which brought about big economic challenges. Programs like Social Security and unemployment insurance were created. By 1975 Western Europe and the U.S. dedicated large portions of GDP to social welfare. In the U.S., new initiatives helped the poor, minorities, and single-women households. |
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Term
| What was T. H Marshall’s explanation for the development of the welfare state? |
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Definition
| - Marshall explained the development of the welfare state through the evolution of civil, political, and social rights, forming the basis of social cohesion in industrial society. Argued that the welfare state provided essential social rights, ensuring full participation in society regardless of economic status. |
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Term
| How was the development of the welfare state explained by the theory of technological determinism? |
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Definition
| It was seen as necessary adaptation to the changes brought about by technological advancements; these changes fundamentally shape societal structures, needs, and responses, including the establishment of social safety nets and welfare programs. |
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Term
| How was the emergence of the welfare state seen from a Marxist perspective? |
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Definition
- Employers reduced wages due to high usage of bread scale - lower productivity and lower wages
- Marxist emphasizes that welfare states are designed to maintain capitalism by pacifying the working class through minimal concessions. |
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Term
| What is the thesis of American exceptionalism as it applies to the modern welfare state? |
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Definition
| - While welfare states share commonalities, the U.S. stands out for the size, structure, and philosophy of its welfare programs. This distinction leads to theories of American exceptionalism, which argue that the U.S. places more emphasis on individual responsibility and market solutions compared to European welfare states. |
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Term
| What are the three social protection goals for the welfare state and the three forms of social welfare policy that correspond to these goals? |
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Definition
Economic Security, Material Sufficiency, and access to basic services
- Policy forms:
1) Social security: social insurance against illness, unemployment, disability, retirement, death of a spouse
2) Public assistance: cash relief, in-kind, and social services (mental health, etc.)
3) Education, health care, housing, nutrition |
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Term
| What is “regulatory welfare?” |
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Definition
| - Government's role in ensuring certain social welfare benefits through regulatory actions rather than direct spending. |
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Term
| How did Richard Titmuss define social, occupational, and fiscal welfare? |
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Definition
Social Welfare- Viewed as the collective responsibility of society to ensure the well-being of its members. State or community provides support in healthcare, education, housing and social security. - He felt that social welfare is important in promoting social justice and addressing inequalities.
- Occupational Welfare- benefits and services provided by employers to their employees. E.g. Health insurance, pensions, paid leave- He highlights how occupational plays a role in shaping the overall welfare state, it complements or can even substitute for public welfare programs.
- Fiscal Welfare- the financial benefits provided through the tax system. Tax expenditures, such as deductions and credits that provide welfare benefits by reducing tax liabilities for people- he felt that it often goes unnoticed, but plays a role in influencing income distribution and equity. |
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Term
| Identify the four sources of social spending in the OECD measure of Net Social Expenditure. |
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Definition
- Public Social Expenditure
- Private Social Expenditure
- Tax expenditures
- Social Insurance contributions |
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Term
| Why is the most accurate measure of social welfare spending as a percent of a nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) a weak indicator of welfare state generosity? |
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Definition
| - it doesn’t account for indirect expenditures like tax expenditures or private spending. It also doesn’t factor in the efficiency of social programs. Countries with higher unemployment levels or more elderly citizens will have the highest grossing levels of spending levels |
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Term
| . How does the US spending on social welfare compare to that of the wealthy Western European countries when measured by the OECD calculation of Gross Public Social Expenditure versus when measured by the OECD calculation of Net Social Expenditure per capita, controlling for the purchasing power of different national currencies? |
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Definition
| OECD measures, the U.S. is often seen as the stingiest spender on welfare. However, this can be misleading because the U.S. spending might be higher when accounting for tax expenditures and occupation benefits. The distinction between Gross public Social Expenditures and Net Social Expenditure is important because gross expenditure doesn't account for these factors, which inflates comparisons with European countries. |
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Term
| What is the difference between the way goods and services are allocated in the social and economic markets of the welfare state? |
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Definition
| In the economic market, goods and services are allocated through reciprocal exchange, where individuals pay for what they receive. In the social market, they are allocated through unilateral transfers, such as welfare benefits. |
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Term
| What conflicting objectives does a capitalist society deal with when mixing welfare services with the market economy? |
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Definition
| The tension between the market’s emphasis on efficiency and profit, and the welfare state’s focus on need, equity, and fairness |
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Term
| What are the four fundamental questions (dimensions of choice) that have to be addressed in designing social welfare policies? |
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Definition
- The basis of social allocations
- The types/nature of social provisions
- The delivery of social provisions
- Ways to finance social provisions |
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Term
| How are preferences for cost-effectiveness versus social effectiveness reflected in conservative and progressive views of means-testing for social welfare benefits? |
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Definition
Conservative View: Conservatives tend to prioritize cost-effectiveness, advocating for means-tested programs where benefits are provided only to those who demonstrate the financial need. This would ensure resources are not wasted on individuals who do not need them, reducing government spending and focusing aid onto those in most need. Safety Net rather than universal entitlement.
- Progressive view: Social effectiveness, often advocating for universal programs. Argument that providing broader access to welfare benefits reduces social stigma and ensures that more people in need are supported. Focus on the social benefits of inclusivity and the potential for universal programs to promote equity and reduce poverty on a larger scale. |
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Term
| 20. What are the two ways that TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families) changed the character of eligibility for public assistance? |
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Definition
- Means- tested program, introduced stricter work requirements and imposed
time limits on receiving benefits, marking a shift from previous welfare programs. |
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Term
| . Under the 1972 amendments to the Social security Act, which three categories of public assistance programs were consolidated under the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program? |
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Definition
- Old-age Assistance (OAA)
- Aid to the Blind (AB)
- Aid to the Permanently and totally disabled APTD |
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Term
| . The US has been described as the stingiest welfare state based on the OECD gross measure of direct social spending. Is this correct? Why? |
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Definition
| - The U.S. appears stingy based on gross social spending, but this measure doesn’t account for indirect expenditures or private spending. When these are included, the U.S. ranks higher in terms of welfare generosity. |
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Term
| What is the difference between a Universal Basic Income and a Negative Income Tax that provides a guaranteed annual income? |
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Definition
Universal basic income
- A form of social security where all citizens receive a regular, unconditional
sum of money from the government, regardless of income, employment
status, or wealth
- Normative criteria of need
- Attributed need
- No need for means-testing
- Negative Income Tax (NIT)
- Provides guaranteed annual income through the tax system
- A system in which individuals earning below a certain threshold receive payments from the government, instead of paying taxes, as a way to supplement their income
- NIT operates through the tax system, making it conditional on income level |
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Term
| How did Aristotle define the difference between numerical equality and proportional equality? |
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Definition
Numerical equality- Giving the same treatment to everyone, that all individuals receive the same amount or are treated identically regardless of their circumstances.
- Proportional equality- emphasizes fairness based on individual circumstances and contributions. E.g. people may require different amounts of resources to achieve fairness, equality in distribution should be adjusted based on factors like skill or need. |
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Term
| When it comes to education, conservative and progressive preferences tend to differ in regard to the nature of the social provision. Explain the difference and the reason for it. |
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Definition
Conservatives emphasize individual responsibility where family is the primary agent of their child's education.
Progressive- Focus on equity and access- advocate for government involvement to ensure all students have access to education regardless of socioeconomic status.
E.g. Conservative prefer voucher systems that support private options and competition, while progressives favor public education systems with universal access. |
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Term
| . What are the three basic elements in the analytic approach to social welfare policy in this course? |
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Definition
Analysis: involves breaking down complex phenomena into their component parts
- Identifying the basic choices that are required and the alternatives associated with
each choice (The dimensions of choice)
- Recognizing the underlying values and assumptions |
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Term
| How can the regulatory power of government be used to provide a social welfare benefit? |
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Definition
| By establishing laws that protect workers rights, ensure fair wages, and mandate safety standards in various industries, improving overall living conditions. Regulations can safeguard access to essential services like health care, housing, and consumer protections, ensuring equitable distribution of resources. |
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Term
| Some people say that welfare can create a moral hazard in that welfare benefits may sometimes provide an incentive for the very circumstances they are seeking to ameliorate. What is an example? |
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Definition
| One example of this scenario is the Speenhamland Act, which established a mandated living wage that would be upheld by the government. Not only did this act lower the incentive to work, it also lowered employers’ incentive to pay a full living wage to their employees, knowing the government would pay the difference. |
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Term
| What is the difference between a refundable tax credit and a non-refundable tax credit. |
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Definition
Refundable tax credit allows individuals to receive a refund even if the credit exceeds their total tax liability. If the credit reduces a taxpayer’s tax owed to zero, any remaining amount can be refunded back to the taxpayer. E.g. EITC- if a taxpayer qualifies for a 3,000 EITC but owes only 1,500 in taxes, they would receive a refund of 1,500 in addition to having their tax liability eliminated.
- non-refundable tax credit only reduces taxes owed up to the amount of tax liability. If the credit exceeds the amount of taxes owed, the taxpayer will not receive any remaining amount back. E.g. Child Tax Credit- if a taxpayer qualifies for 2,000 credit but only owes 1,000 in taxes, the credit can reduce their tax liability to zero, but they will not receive the remaining 1,000 as a refund. |
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Term
| What are the three basic principles of the English poor law? |
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Definition
Local responsibility for the poor
- Training their children
- Employment placement for the unemployed |
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Term
| How is the 1662 Law of Settlement reflected in today’s challenging social welfare policy dilemmas? |
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Definition
| The law of Settlement required residency proof for receiving poor relief, which is similar to today’s issues of determining who qualifies for social benefits, especially for undocumented immigrants. |
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Term
| What are tax expenditures and who tends to benefit most from them? |
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Definition
| Tax expenditures are deductions, credits, and exemptions you take out when filing your tax returns. They usually benefit middle- and upper- income individuals who are more likely to have taxable income to deduct from. E.g. deductions for mortgage interest or retirement savings disproportionately help those with higher incomes. |
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Term
| In what two ways does the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) incentivize work effort? |
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Definition
- Increased financial reward for Employment- The EITC offers a refundable tax credit to low- and moderate-income working folx, which increases as their earned income
rises up to a certain point. It encourages individuals to maintain employment as the
earnings can lead to greater rewards through credit
- Reduction of Poverty- lifts families out of poverty by providing additional income to
those who are working but are still not making enough to live - encourages folx to keep working as they know their efforts will be supplemented by the tax credit. |
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Term
. What are two reasons that explain the gap between eligibility for and use of benefits
or services? |
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Definition
Level of transferability - what provision can be used for and how many choices are provided
b. How the services are accessed/delivered - Having to go to multiple locations for a task or take time off work can be difficult; bureaucracy can be intimidating to navigate
c. Stigma - some individuals might feel discouraged from seeking help because there is
a stigma associated with people who receive government assistance. These social perceptions frame reliance on welfare as a personal failure, might lead some to avoid applying for benefits |
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Term
| What is the difference between the way income is calculated in the official poverty measure and supplemental poverty measure? |
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Definition
Official poverty measure calculates income based solely on pre-tax cash income, such as wages and social security benefits.
- Supplemental poverty measures include additional factors like government assistance (food stamps, tax credits) and accounts for necessary expenses (taxes, healthcare, housing), which is a more comprehensive view. |
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Term
| How did the responses to COVID 19 impact the future prospects of public education? |
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Definition
| Remote learning and technology integration, reshaped public education by the adoption of online tools. While this helps schools be innovative, it also exposes educational inequalities. Future efforts on access, flexibility, and mental health support in education systems. |
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Term
| What was the objective of the Speenhamland Act of 1795 and what were its outcomes according to most analysts. |
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Definition
Meant to address the problem of poverty among low-income workers (jobs did not pay enough to live)
- Wage compensation
- Outcomes: people had low incentives to work due to the mandated living wage; employers had low incentives to pay workers a living wage, knowing the difference would be covered by the government; “catastrophic”
- Provided wage compensation for low-income workers. It aimed to reduce poverty but ultimately resulted in wage suppression as employers reduced wages, knowing the government would subsidize worker’s incomes. |
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Term
| How do Galbraith’s argument about the “dependence effect” and Buchanan’s theory of “public choice” differ in terms of their implications for increased government spending? Explain why. |
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Definition
Galbraith argues that much consumer demand is artificial, driven by production itself, which justifies higher taxes and public spending on essential goods.
- Buchanan argues through his public choice theory that politicians have incentives to overspend because the benefits of public projects are concentrated, while the costs are diffused. |
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Term
| What do the Poor Law Reform of 1834 and TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) have in common? |
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Definition
| Both the Poor Law Reform of 1834 and TANF require recipients to work (conditional) |
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Term
Technical monopoly and paternalism are two conditions used to justify government intervention in a capitalist society. Explain these conditions.
Technical monopoly: |
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Definition
Government regulates orgs like PG&E to ensure quality
- e.g., post office, electricity (PG&E), gas lines - most efficient and
effective to have just one producer.Paternalistic Functions
- Services provided by government for people who can’t take of themselves - assigns paternal role
- Market does not work well
- e.g., children (foster care), elderly, mentally ill |
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Term
| How does life expectancy affect how different groups benefit from social security? |
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Definition
Racial and Ethnic Differences- White and Asian Americans typically have longer life expectancy groups tend to collect social security benefits for a more extended period. Those with shorter life expectancy fewer years of receiving social security, lower total benefit. This impacts Native Americans and African Americans more.
- Gender- Women generally live longer, they collect benefits longer , but typically have lower lifetime earnings due to wage gaps. Men have shorter lives, but receive larger monthly payments due to their higher lifetime earnings. |
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Term
What is the difference between the compensation and diagnostic differentiation as
principles for allocating social welfare benefits? |
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Definition
| Compensation: An attempt to restore equity to those who have been disadvantaged. Diagnostic differentiation: Must meet certain criteria to receive benefits. Must have a medical diagnosis to qualify. Based on the professional judgment of individual needs |
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