Russel Sage Foundation

For years, debates have raged over which social system does best for society’s least well-off. Liberals contend that free market systems leave many people behind, while conservatives argue that social democracies hurt the poor by creating adverse employment incentives and stifling growth. What does the evidence show?

With support from the Foundation, Lane Kenworthy will compare material well-being among low-income households in the United States, Canada, Germany, and Sweden. Kenworthy will follow up on an influential 1995 study conducted by Susan Mayer, which surveyed material hardship in four countries by looking at data from the mid-to-late 1980s. Kenworthy’s study will include more recent data and expand the indicators of well-being to include housing, possession of consumer durables, quality of neighborhood, health status, financial wealth, and hours worked. He will analyze the role of asset wealth in financing consumption needs, as well as the offsetting benefits of public services such as housing assistance, food support, and childcare. This will provide a more accurate depiction of the economic standard of living that the poor face under different social structures.

Reports and Publications

•  Lane Kenworthy, Jessica Epstein, and Daniel Duerr. "Rising Tide, Distribution, and the Material Well-Being of the Poor." Working Paper (PDF)