Showing papers by "Irwin Garfinkel published in 2006"
TL;DR: This article found that half of welfare state transfers in rich nations are inkind benefits, and that counting in-kind benefits at government cost and accounting for the indirect taxes used to finance transfers substantially reduces cross-national differences in inequality at the bottom of the income distribution.
Abstract: Previous studies find large crossnational differences in inequality amongst rich Western nations, due in large part to differences in the generosity of welfare state transfers. The United States is the least generous nation and the one having the most aftertax and transfer inequality. But these analyses are limited to the effects of cash and nearcash transfers and direct taxes on incomes, while on average, half of welfare state transfers in rich nations are inkind benefits—health insurance, education, and other services. Counting inkind benefits at government cost and accounting for the indirect taxes used to finance transfers substantially reduces crossnational differences in inequality at the bottom of the income distribution. The findings have implications for how we think about tradeoffs across welfare state domains that all nations face and we illustrate this with reference to the current U.S. debate about health insurance. © 2006 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management
172 citations
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TL;DR: This paper examined the effects of incarceration on the earnings and employment in a sample of poor fathers, using data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, and found that incarceration is associated with a 14 to 26 percent decline in hourly wages.
Abstract: We examine the effects of incarceration on the earnings and employment in a sample of poor fathers, using data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study. The Fragile Families data offer a rich set of covariates for adjusting for factors that are correlated with both incarceration and earnings. Because the survey obtains data from male respondents and their female partners, we are also able to measure incarceration more completely than with self-report data alone. Regression and propensity score analysis indicates that the employment rates of formerlyincarcerated men are about 6 percentage points lower than for similar men who have not been incarcerated. Incarceration is associated with a 14 to 26 percent decline in hourly wages. We examine also provide a sensitivity analysis that shows how results might vary in the presence of omitted variables.
41 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined whether child support enforcement is associated with domestic violence using the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study and found that stricter enforcement increases the risk of violence among non-cohabiting mothers who receive welfare and have not obtained legal entitlement to child support.
Abstract: Some advocates worry that stronger child support enforcement may increase domestic violence. The predictions of a simple economic model are ambiguous; stronger enforcement may increase the mother's bargaining power, which reduces violence, but may also increase the father's opportunity and motive for violence thereby increasing violence. This paper examines whether enforcement is associated with domestic violence using the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study. We find that stricter enforcement increases the risk of violence among non-cohabiting mothers who receive welfare and have not obtained legal entitlement to child support. Controlling for sample selection and using difference-in-differences strengthens the result.
13 citations
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TL;DR: In this article, the authors employ recent longitudinal data on unmarried fathers to compare levels of underground activity among fathers living in cities with differing levels of child support enforcement (CSE) and find that stricter CSE is associated with fewer hours of underground employment.
Abstract: We employ recent longitudinal data on unmarried fathers to compare levels of underground activity among fathers living in cities with differing levels of child support enforcement (CSE). The survey from which the data are drawn is unique in that it directly queries fathers about their participation in the underground economy. We also examine the effect of the strength of CSE on fathers' participation in the regular economy. We find that, in general, stricter CSE is associated with fewer hours of underground employment. The effects are stronger among fathers who may be more likely to come into contact with the CSE system. We find little evidence that stronger enforcement is associated with employment or hours in the regular sector.
1 citations
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TL;DR: The authors examined whether enforcement is associated with domestic violence using the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study and found that stricter enforcement increases the risk of violence among non-cohabiting mothers who receive welfare and have not obtained legal entitlement to child support.
Abstract: Some advocates worry that stronger child support enforcement may increase domestic violence. The predictions of a simple economic model are ambiguous; stronger enforcement may increase the mother’s bargaining power, which reduces violence, but may also increase the father’s opportunity and motive for violence thereby increasing violence. This paper examines whether enforcement is associated with domestic violence using the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study. We find that stricter enforcement increases the risk of violence among noncohabiting mothers who receive welfare and have not obtained legal entitlement to child support. Controlling for sample selection and using difference-in-differences strengthens the result.
1 citations