In The Netherlands, the average exit rate out of welfare is dramatically low. Most welfare recipients have to comply with guidelines on job search e ort that are imposed by the welfare agency. If they do not, then a sanction in the form of a temporarily bene t reduction can be imposed. This paper investigates the e ect of such sanctions on the transition from welfare to work using a unique set ...

In this research I integrate the theory of welfare stigma (Moffitt, 1983) and the theory of optimal income taxation. I study optimal income taxation and an optimal welfare program within a unified framework, taking welfare stigma into account. In the framework, I assume that the government has two policy instruments: general income taxation and a welfare program. I assume that individuals are h...

The study of community attitudes toward welfare and welfare recipients is an area of increasing interest. This is not only because negative attitudes can lead to stigmatization and discrimination, but because of the relevance of social attitudes to policy decisions. We quantify the attitudes toward welfare in the Australian population using attitude data from a nationally representative survey ...