Ein moderner und nachhaltiger Sozialstaat braucht eine gesunde Mischung aus staatlicher Fürsorge und Eigenverantwortung. Die Hartz-Reformen versuchten, die richtige Mischung mit dem Prinzip des Förderns und Forderns in der Grundsicherung herzustellen. Zahlreiche Menschen sind seither nicht...

By using estimates from an Almost Ideal Demand System (AIDS), we investigate how the German energy tax on car fuels changes the private households-CO2 emissions, living standards, and post-tax income distribution. Our results show that the tax implies a trade-off between the aim to reduce...

Die Einführung des flächendeckenden gesetzlichen Mindestlohns von 8,50 Euro ist ein großes, mit vielen sozialpolitischen Risiken verbundenes Experiment. Dieser Übersichtsartikel zeigt, dass weder die unterschiedlichen theoretischen Erklärungsmodelle noch die große Anzahl empirischer...

We outline a procedure for combining six cross-sections of the German Sample Survey of Income and Expenditure, and discuss potential pitfalls of such a venture. Particularly, we investigate the consequences of a major break in the survey design for inter-temporal comparisons of expenditure...

We examine financial literacy in Germany and its relevance for financial well-being. Using data from the Panel on Household Finances collected in 2021, we show that about 62% of German households answer the Big Three financial literacy questions correctly. Those with lower education, who are out...

This paper examines the evolution of the redistributive role of the State in Brazil at the beginning of the 21st century. For this purpose, we compute the marginal effects of the cash transfers, taxes, and in-kind benefits on inequality using the Lerman-Yitzhaki progressivity index. Our main...

Using a new comprehensive tax-benefit model, JUTTA, this paper examines how labour supply incentives – both to participate in the labour force (the “extensive” margin) and to supply extra hours of work (the “incentive” margin) – have changed in Finland in 1995-2007. The results...

This paper reports a study on decision-making by borrowers regarding take-up of different loan types in a laboratory microfinance experiment setting. I hypothesize that when borrowers are offered a flexible choice of different loan types (here, individual liability (IL) and joint liability...

We analyse to what extent the complexity of benefit rules affects take-up in a setting where the effects of complexity can be separated from other potential causes of non-take-up. The benefit we study is extensively used by individuals from all socioeconomic groups, namely the municipal...

This paper investigates the role of demand-side incentives to mothers and supply-side incentives to community health workers (ASHAs) in improving maternal and child healthcare. These conditional cash benefits were part of a nationwide health intervention Janani Suraksha Yojana, introduced in...