Redistribution and Insurance in the German Welfare State

Charlotte Bartels

Schmollers Jahrbuch : Journal of Applied Social Science Studies / Zeitschrift für Wirtschafts- und Sozialwissenschaften, 2012, vol. 132, issue 2, 265-295

Abstract: Welfare states redistribute both between individuals reducing annual inequality and over the life-cycle insuring against income risks. But studies measuring redistribution often focus only on a one-year period. Using German SOEP data from 1984 to 2009, long-term inequality over a 20-year period is computed and then decomposed into an inter-and intra-individual component. Results show that annual inequality is higher than long-term inequality, but redistribution is also larger from an annual perspective. In the long-term, the German welfare state clearly prioritizes insurance over redistribution. This gets even more pronounced at later stages of the life-cycle through the payment of social security pensions.

JEL-codes: D31 D63 H53 H55 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2012
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Related works:
Working Paper: Redistribution and Insurance in the German Welfare State (2011)
Working Paper: Redistribution and insurance in the German welfare state (2011)
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