The redistributive design of social security systems

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Conde-Ruiz, J. Ignacio; Profeta, Paola
• 署名单位: Bocconi University
• 刊物名称: ECONOMIC JOURNAL
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0013-0133
• 发表日期: 2007
• 页码: 686-712
• 关键词: political sustainability; positive theory; insurance

摘要

Countries with low intragenerational redistribution in social security systems (Bismarckian) are associated with larger public pension expenditures, a smaller fraction of private pension and lower income inequality than countries with more redistributive social security (Beveridgean). This article introduces a bidimensional voting model to account for these features. Agents different in age, income and in their ability to invest in the capital market vote on the degree of redistribution of the social security system and on the size of the transfer. In an economy with three income groups, a small Beveridgean system is supported by low-income agents, who gain from its redistributive feature, and high-income individuals, who seek to minimise their tax contribution and to invest in a private scheme. Middle-income individuals instead favour a large Bismarckian system.