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Who’s in for no strings: revisiting the determinants of universal basic income support

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 November 2024

Leire Rincón García Open the ORCID record for Leire Rincón García [Opens in a new window]
Leire Rincón García*
Affiliation:
Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
*
Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

Universal basic income (UBI) is becoming a prominent alternative to reform the welfare state, yet public support for this policy remains a puzzle. Existing scholarship empirically shows that certain groups like the low-income and left-wing show support, but it remains unclear if this translates to a preference for UBI over alternatives. This paper argues against this assumption: UBI challenges welfare norms and deservingness principles, suggesting people would typically prefer means-tested options. Drawing on a conjoint experiment, this paper empirically shows supportive evidence of the idea that support for a UBI does not translate into an inherent preference for UBI. These findings have widespread implications for both the UBI literature and the politics of welfare reform.

Keywords

universal basic incomeconjoint experimentpreferencesmaterial self-interestother-regardingness
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Article
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Journal of Social Policy , First View , pp. 1 - 38
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press

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