This study investigates an old question that has re-emerged in social policy-making and in analyses of global social development: to what extent does targeting and size of social transfers matter for poverty? Using multilevel logistic regression and LIS income data for 40 middle- and high-income...

The goal of the welfare state is the redistribution of income in order to reduce poverty and reduce inequality. Income inequality and relative poverty are often cited as major policy concerns, and are tracked by economists. Economists and policy makers also value measures of absolute poverty as...

Korpi and Palme's (1998) classic "The Paradox of Redistribution and Strategies of Equality" claims that universal social policy better reduces poverty than social policies targeted at the poor. This article revisits Korpi and Palme's classic, and in the process, explores and informs a set of...

In the Western countries poverty has increased along with the resurgence of low-income targeting and the increased conditionality of social assistance. This paper provides new evidence on the relationship between social minimums and income adequacy by examining the extent to which social...

Most welfare states design their tax/benefit system to combat income poverty. Some countries are more effective in poverty alleviation than others. What can explain these variations in outcomes and effectiveness? And has the redistributive power of different social programs changed over time and...

This study uses the Luxembourg Income Study (LIS data) from 2013 to study 1) the contribution of child maintenance to the income packages of lone mothers, 2) the proportion of lone mothers receiving child maintenance and the level of child maintenance for those receiving it, and 3) the extent to...

In most OECD countries the gap between rich and poor has widened over the past decades. This paper analyzes whether and to what extent taxes and social transfers have contributed to this trend. Has the redistributive power of different social programs changed over time? The paper contributes to...

Previous research has highlighted the disadvantaged position immigrants often face in the economy, particularly when it comes to labor market outcomes such as employment or earnings. Extending this literature, the present study evaluates the economic exclusion of immigrants, conceptualized not...