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Does inconvenience explain low take-up? Evidence from unemployment insurance

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  • Avraham Ebenstein

    (Lecturer, Department of Economics, Hebrew University of Jerusalem)

  • Kevin Stange

    (Robert Wood Johnson Scholar in Health Policy Research, University of Michigan)

Abstract

Application inconvenience is one popular explanation for why many individuals do not receive the social benefits for which they are eligible. Applications take time and some individuals may decide that the financial benefits do not outweigh these time costs. This paper investigates this explanation using cross-state variation in administrative changes that made applying for unemployment insurance (UI) benefits substantially more convenient over the past decade. We find that the introduction of phone- and Internet-based claiming did not have an appreciable impact on overall UI take-up, nor did it lead to a shift toward recipients that are higher income or likely to be receiving the maximum benefit amount. These findings are inconsistent with a time- and transaction-cost explanation for low take-up, since remote UI claiming is less time intensive. This suggests that reducing application barriers alone may not be an effective tool for increasing program participation. © 2010 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management.

Suggested Citation

  • Avraham Ebenstein & Kevin Stange, 2010. "Does inconvenience explain low take-up? Evidence from unemployment insurance," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(1), pages 111-136.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:jpamgt:v:29:y:2010:i:1:p:111-136
    DOI: 10.1002/pam.20481
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    Cited by:

    1. Colin Gray, 2018. "Why Leave Benefits on the Table? Evidence from SNAP," Upjohn Working Papers 18-288, W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research.
    2. Uguccioni, James, 2022. "The long-run effects of parental unemployment in childhood," CLEF Working Paper Series 45, Canadian Labour Economics Forum (CLEF), University of Waterloo.
    3. Steven G. Craig & Edward C. Hoang & Janet E. Kohlhase, 2023. "Adoption of Technological Change in the Public Sector: Evidence From US States," International Regional Science Review, , vol. 46(3), pages 299-327, May.
    4. Lawson, Nicholas, 2015. "Social program substitution and optimal policy," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 13-27.
    5. Julie L. Hotchkiss & Robert E. Moore & Fernando Rios-Avila, 2017. "Family Welfare and the Cost of Unemployment," FRB Atlanta Working Paper 2017-7, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
    6. Vivi Alatas & Abhijit Banerjee & Rema Hanna & Benjamin A. Olken & Ririn Purnamasari & Matthew Wai-Poi, 2016. "Self-Targeting: Evidence from a Field Experiment in Indonesia," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 124(2), pages 371-427.
    7. Marta Lachowska & Isaac Sorkin & Stephen A. Woodbury, 2022. "Firms and Unemployment Insurance Take-up," NBER Working Papers 30266, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    8. Laura Kawano & Sara LaLumia, 2017. "How Income Changes During Unemployment: Evidence from Tax Return Data," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 52(2), pages 418-456.
    9. Maya Haran Rosen & Orly Sade, 2017. "Does Financial Regulation Unintentionally Ignore Less Privileged Populations? The Investigation of a Regulatory Fintech Advancement, Objective and Subjective Financial Literacy," Bank of Israel Working Papers 2017.10, Bank of Israel.
    10. repec:wil:wileco:2012-10 is not listed on IDEAS
    11. Zhang, Guangli, 2021. "The Effect of Unemployment Benefit Pay Frequency on UI Claimants' Job Search Behaviors," Working Papers 21-3, Sinquefield Center for Applied Economic Research, Saint Louis University.
    12. Julie Janssens & Natascha Van Mechelen, 2017. "Who is to Blame? An Overview of the Factors Contributing to the Non-Take-Up of Social Rights," Working Papers 1708, Herman Deleeck Centre for Social Policy, University of Antwerp.
    13. Manasi Deshpande & Yue Li, 2019. "Who Is Screened Out? Application Costs and the Targeting of Disability Programs," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 11(4), pages 213-248, November.
    14. Blasco, Sylvie & Fontaine, Francois, 2021. "Unemployment Duration and the Take-up of Unemployment Insurance," IZA Discussion Papers 14038, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    15. Lester Lusher & Geoffrey C. Schnorr & Rebecca L.C. Taylor, 2022. "Unemployment Insurance as a Worker Indiscipline Device? Evidence from Scanner Data," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 14(2), pages 285-319, April.
    16. Nicholas Lawson, 2017. "Fiscal Externalities and Optimal Unemployment Insurance," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 9(4), pages 281-312, November.
    17. Christopher J. O'Leary & Kenneth J. Kline & Thomas A. Stengle & Stephen A. Wandner, 2023. "Why Are Unemployment Insurance Claims So Low?," Upjohn Working Papers 23-383, W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research.
    18. Kukla-Acevedo, Sharon & Heflin, Colleen M., 2014. "Unemployment insurance effects on child academic outcomes: Results from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 47(P3), pages 246-252.
    19. Raj Chetty & Amy Finkelstein, 2012. "Social Insurance: Connecting Theory to Data," NBER Working Papers 18433, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    20. Wu, Derek & Meyer, Bruce D., 2023. "Certification and Recertification in Welfare Programs: What Happens When Automation Goes Wrong?," IZA Discussion Papers 16294, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    21. Laura Salisbury, 2024. "Union Army Widows and the Historical Take-Up of Social Benefits," NBER Chapters, in: The Economic History of American Inequality: New Evidence and Perspectives, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    22. Lachowska, Marta & Meral, Merve & Woodbury, Stephen A., 2016. "Effects of the unemployment insurance work test on long-term employment outcomes," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 246-265.
    23. Jeehoon Han, 2020. "Snap Expansions And Participation In Government Safety Net Programs," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 58(4), pages 1929-1948, October.
    24. Dayanand S. Manoli & Nicholas Turner, 2014. "Nudges and Learning: Evidence from Informational Interventions for Low-Income Taxpayers," NBER Working Papers 20718, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    25. Russell, Blair D. & Moulton, Stephanie & Greenbaum, Robert T., 2014. "Take-up of mortgage assistance for distressed homeowners: The role of geographic accessibility," Journal of Housing Economics, Elsevier, vol. 24(C), pages 57-74.

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