Hernandez, M., Pudney, S. and Hancock, R. (2006) The Welfare Costs of Means Testing: Pensioner Participation in Income. Working Paper. Department of Economics, University of Sheffield ISSN 1749-8368
Abstract
We estimate parametric and semi-parametric binary choice models of benefit take-up by British pensioners and use a revealed preference argument to infer the cash-equivalent value of disutility arising from stigma or complexity of the claims process. These implicit costs turn out to be relatively small, averaging about £3-4 per week across Income Support recipients. Using the Foster-Greer-Thorbecke measure of poverty among pensioners, we find that allowing for implicit claim costs incurred by benefit recipients raises the measured degree of poverty by not more than 13%.
Metadata
Item Type: | Monograph |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | The Sheffield Economics Research Paper (SERP) series offers a forum for the research output of the academic staff and research students of the Department of Economics, University of Sheffield. Papers are reviewed for quality and presentation by a departmental editor. However, the contents and opinions expressed remain the responsibility of the authors. All papers may be downloaded free on the understanding that the contents are preliminary and therefore permission from the author(s) should be sought before they are referenced. |
Keywords: | benefit take-up, program participation, pensions, welfare, poverty |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) > Department of Economics (Sheffield) > Sheffield Economics Research Papers Series |
Depositing User: | Repository Officer |
Date Deposited: | 20 Oct 2009 15:03 |
Last Modified: | 08 Jun 2014 03:50 |
Published Version: | http://www.shef.ac.uk/economics/research/serps/yea... |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Department of Economics, University of Sheffield |
Identification Number: | Sheffield Economic Research Paper Series 2006004 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:9941 |