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Welfare State Development, Individual Deprivations and Income Inequality: A cross-country analysis in Latin America and the Caribbean

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  • Cruz-Martinez, Gibran

    (CSIC)

Abstract

Several scholars have confirmed the role that the welfare state (WS) plays in reducing poverty, promoting equality and ensuring the common wellbeing. One of the limitations of the scholarship has been the conceptualization and operationalization of the WS and poverty as one-dimensional variables. The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between welfare state development, single-dimensions deprivations and income inequality in Latin America and the Caribbean, before and after controlling for demographic and cyclical factors. The WS is operationalized as a one-dimensional variable, but also taking into account its multidimensional nature. Three individual deprivations suffered by people on poverty and two income inequality indicators are used as dependent variables. Three pooled time-series cross-section regression analyses with panel-corrected standard errors models were carried out on 18 countries in the region around 2000, 2005 and 2010. This paper shows that the development of social-welfare programs and institutions seems to be an effective way of tackling individual deprivations suffered by people on poverty in the region. On the other hand, the WS development didn’t appear to be effective to reduce income inequality. The outcomes of welfare institutions appear to be the pivotal dimension to reduce income inequality and income deprivations in the region.

Suggested Citation

  • Cruz-Martinez, Gibran, 2017. "Welfare State Development, Individual Deprivations and Income Inequality: A cross-country analysis in Latin America and the Caribbean," SocArXiv yw8kg, Center for Open Science.
    • Handle: RePEc:osf:socarx:yw8kg
    DOI: 10.31235/osf.io/yw8kg
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    1. Cruz-Martinez, Gibran, 2018. "A Bottom-up picture of Intra-National Welfare Regimes: The case of Marginalised Communities in Puerto Rico," SocArXiv 8c2ex, Center for Open Science.
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    3. Cruz-Martinez, Gibran, 2019. "Comparative social policy in contemporary Latin America: Concepts, theories and a research agenda," SocArXiv ygh8d, Center for Open Science.
    4. Cruz-Martinez, Gibran, 2019. "Older‐Age Social Pensions and Poverty: Revisiting Assumptions on Targeting and Universalism," SocArXiv y9uk6, Center for Open Science.
    5. Vanesa Jorda & Jose M. Alonso, 2020. "What works to mitigate and reduce relative (and absolute) inequality?: A systematic review," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2020-152, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).

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