Income Shocks and Intrahousehold Dynamics: Evidence from a Guaranteed Income Experiment
NBER Working Papers · 2026 · Elizabeth Rhodes、David E. Broockman、Eva Vivalt、Patrick K. Krause、Sarah Miller、Alexander W. Bartik
中文摘要
个人收入发生变化时,可能会影响其整个家庭。我们研究了一项无条件现金转移的家庭内部效应:在该实验中,1,000名个体被随机选中,在三年内每月获得1,000美元转移支付,而由2,000名参与者组成的对照组在同一时期内每月获得50美元。我们未发现该转移对家庭稳定性的总体指标产生影响,尽管有提示性证据表明,处于伴侣关系中的领取者,其关系质量有所改善,对伴侣的信任也有所增强。向朋友和家人的转移支付增加,这与领取者同他人分享部分新增收入的情形一致。该转移还对其他家庭成员的收入和就业相关结果产生了溢出效应:扣除领取者收入后的家庭收入每年减少约1,700美元,且伴侣获得晋升或转入更好工作的可能性降低。其他家庭成员参加教育或培训的可能性也显著提高;领取者也更有可能报告其家庭中有人不得不放弃医疗服务,这可能反映了家庭与医疗系统有更多接触,并识别出此前未被满足的需求。我们观察到,家庭内部的决策权或劳动分工变化有限。亲密伴侣暴力的部分指标有所下降,女性尤为明显,但报告的发生率较低,且在对多重假设检验进行校正后,大多数估计结果不再具有统计显著性。各子群体之间的差异总体上估计不够精确,但点估计表明,当领取者为女性时,教育和健康方面的溢出效应更大。家庭结构似乎也会调节转移支付的影响。
Abstract
When an individual's income changes, it can affect their entire household. We study the intrahousehold effects of an unconditional cash transfer in which 1,000 individuals were randomly selected to receive a $1,000 per month transfer for three years, while a control group of 2,000 participants received $50 per month over the same time period. We find no effects on aggregate measures of household stability, although there is suggestive evidence of improved relationship quality and greater trust in partners among recipients in relationships. Transfers to friends and family increase, consistent with recipients sharing some of the additional income with others. There are also spillovers on the income and employment-related outcomes of other household members: household income excluding the recipient decreases by about $1,700 per year, and partners are less likely to be promoted or to move to a better job. Other household members are significantly more likely to participate in education or training, and recipients are also more likely to report someone in their household having to forgo healthcare, potentially reflecting greater engagement with the healthcare system and the identification of previously unmet needs. We observe limited changes in decision-making power or division of labor within the household. Some indicators of intimate partner violence decline, particularly for women, but reported incidence is low and most estimates do not remain statistically significant after adjustment for multiple hypothesis testing. Subgroup differences are generally imprecise, although point estimates suggest larger education and health spillover effects when the recipient is a woman. Household structure also appears to mediates the impacts of the transfers.