Abstract

The aim of this chapter is to highlight some key aspects of recent economic research on the welfare state and antipoverty policy in rich countries and to explore their implications.

We begin with the conceptualization and measurement of poverty before sketching out some core features and approaches to the welfare state and antipoverty policies. We then focus on the central plank ofthe modern welfare state's efforts to address poverty—namely, social protection, discussing in turn the inactive workingage population, child income support, in-work poverty, and retirement and old-age pensions. After that we discuss social spending other than cash transfers, the labor market, education, training and activation, and, finally, intergenerational transmission, childhood, and neighborhoods. We also discuss the

Handbook of Income Distribution, Volume 2B

ISSN 1574-0056, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-444-59429-7.00024-8 welfare state and antipoverty policy in the context ofthe economic crisis that began in 2007-2008 and the implications for strategies aimed at combining economic growth and employment with making serious inroads into poverty. We conclude with directions for future research.

Keywords

Poverty, Antipoverty policy, Redistribution

JEL Classification Codes

I3, I38, D63

23.1.

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Source: Atkinson Anthony, Bourguignon François. Handbook of Income Distribution. Volume 2B. North Holland, 2014. — 2366 p..

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