NEW JERSEY INCOME-MAINTENANCE EXPERIMENT, VOLUME 1 OPERATIONS, SURVEY, AND ADMINISTRATION

• NCJ Number: 51488
• Author(s): D KERSHAW; J FAIR
• Date Published: 1976
• Length: 252 pages
• Sponsoring Agency: Community Services Admin
• Corporate Author: Academic Press, Inc
• Sale Source: Academic Press, Inc
• Publication Type: Program/Project Evaluation
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: ONE OF A SERIES OF MONOGRAPHS BY THE INSTITUTE FOR RESEARCH ON POVERTY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN

Annotation

A NONTECHNICAL DESCRIPTION IS PROVIDED OF THE NEW JERSEY INCOME MAINTENANCE EXPERIMENT, WITH EMPHASIS ON SUBJECT AND SITE SELECTION AND THE PROJECT'S OPERATIONS AND ADMINISTRATION.

Abstract

THE EXPERIMENT, SPONSORED BY THE OFFICE OF ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY BETWEEN 1967 AND 1972, CENTERED ON A GRADUATED WORK-INCENTIVE PROGRAM DEALING WITH A NEGATIVE INCOME TAX. THE EXPERIMENT WAS THE FIRST LARGE-SCALE SOCIAL FIELD STUDY UNDERTAKEN IN THE U.S. IT INVOLVED THE SYSTEMATIC VARIATION OF CERTAIN ECONOMIC INFLUENCES ON A GROUP OF PERSONS AS THEY WENT ABOUT THEIR EVERYDAY LIVES AND A COMPARISON OF THEIR BEHAVIOR WITH THAT OF A CONTROL GROUP, SIMILAR TO THE FIRST EXCEPT THAT PARTICIPANTS WERE NOT SUBJECTED TO THE CONTROLLED VARIANCE OF ECONOMIC FACTORS. THE CENTRAL QUESTION ADDRESSED BY THE EXPERIMENT WAS THE COST OF A NATIONWIDE GUARANTEED ANNUAL INCOME AS DETERMINED BY THE EXTENT TO WHICH FAMILIES WOULD REDUCE THEIR WORK EFFORT IN RESPONSE TO CASH PAYMENTS. SITES WERE SELECTED IN TRENTON, PATERSON, AND JERSEY CITY, AND TWO BASIC RESTRICTIONS WERE IMPOSED WITH RESPECT TO THE COMPOSITION OF THE TREATMENT AND CONTROL SAMPLES: FIRST, SAMPLE ELIGIBILITY REQUIRED THAT A FAMILY HAVE ONE MALE BETWEEN 18 AND 58 YEARS OF AGE WHO WAS NOT DISABLED AND AT LEAST ONE OTHER MEMBER; AND SECOND, TOTAL FAMILY INCOME COULD NOT EXCEED THE POVERTY LINE BY 150 PERCENT. EVERY 4 WEEKS, EACH FAMILY IN THE TREATMENT GROUP FILLED OUT AN INCOME REPORT FORM THAT PROVIDED A BASIS FOR CALCULATING AN INCOME-MAINTENANCE PAYMENT. THE FAMILIES RECEIVED VARYING AMOUNTS OF INCOME SUPPORT BASED ON WEEK-TO-WEEK VARIATIONS IN THEIR PERSONAL INCOMES. THE MAJOR FINDING WAS THAT NO SUBSTANTIAL WITHDRAWAL FROM THE WORK FORCE OCCURRED ON THE PART OF THE TREATMENT GROUP. A SUMMARY OF THE HISTORY AND RESULTS OF THE EXPERIMENT IS PROVIDED, ALONG WITH DESCRIPTIONS OF THE ESSENTIAL OPERATING ELEMENTS (I.E., SELECTION OF THE FAMILIES, DATA COLLECTION METHODS, AND THE ADMINISTRATION OF TRANSFER PAYMENTS). FOLLOWING AN ANALYSIS OF RESEARCH AND TECHNICAL ISSUES, A REVIEW IS PRESENTED OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED IN THE COURSE OF THE PROJECT. APPENDED MATERIALS INCLUDE A CHRONOLOGY OF EVENTS AND THE RULES OF OPERATION FOR THE BASIC INCOME PROGRAM. A SUBJECT INDEX AND TABULAR AND GRAPHIC DATA ARE INCLUDED. REFERENCES ARE FOOTNOTED. SEE ALSO NCJ 51489-51490. (KBL)