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The Unintended Effects of Social Policy Measures
Author(s) -
KaimCaudle Peter
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
review of policy research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.832
H-Index - 45
eISSN - 1541-1338
pISSN - 1541-132X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1541-1338.1993.tb00511.x
Subject(s) - unintended consequences , economics , redistribution (election) , unemployment , contingency , public economics , poverty , population , social policy , demographic economics , labour economics , development economics , economic growth , political science , sociology , market economy , linguistics , philosophy , demography , politics , law
The unintended effects of social policy measures are frequently important, controversial, difficult to ascertain and even more difficult to quantify. Some selected aspects of four types of unintended effects are discussed in this article. First, effects due to redistribution of income as well as life chances and opportunities as determined by market forces and attitudes (sexism, ageism, racism) favor some at the expense of others. Even redistribution which increases gross domestic product (GDP) often disadvantages certain groups. Second, contingency‐related benefits tend to favor population groups differently. Third, free and subsidized health services, in certain conditions, increase both the supply and demand for services—the moral hazard problem. Fourth, contingency benefits in cash and kind tend to increase the incidence of such contingencies and, if income‐related, tend to result in poverty and unemployment traps. Cross‐national comparative studies may be a useful device in ascertaining effects or the absence of effects.