Repository logo
  • Log In
    New user? Click here to register.Have you forgotten your password?
University College Dublin
  • Colleges & Schools
  • Statistics
  • All of DSpace
  • Log In
    New user? Click here to register.Have you forgotten your password?
  1. Home
  2. College of Social Sciences and Law
  3. School of Economics
  4. Economics Working Papers & Policy Papers
  5. Optimal taxation, social contract and the four worlds of welfare capitalism
 
  • Details
Options

Optimal taxation, social contract and the four worlds of welfare capitalism

File(s)
FileDescriptionSizeFormat
Download bargaino_workpap_009.pdf397.6 KB
Author(s)
Bargain, Olivier 
Spadaro, Amedeo 
Uri
http://hdl.handle.net/10197/969
Date Issued
July 2008
Date Available
30T13:50:03Z March 2009
Abstract
Drawing from the formal setting of the optimal tax theory (Mirrlees 1971), the paper identifies the level of Rawlsianism of some European social planner starting from the observation of the real data and redistribution systems and uses it to build a metric that allows measuring the degree of (dis)similarity of the redistribution systems analyzed. It must be considered as a contribution to the comparative research on the structure and typology of the Welfare State (Esping-Andersen, 1990). In particular we consider the optimal taxation model that combines both intensive (Mirrlees) and extensive (Diamond) margins of labor supply, as suggested by Saez (2002) in order to assess the degree of decommodification of seven European welfare systems. We recover the shape of the social welfare function implicit in taxbenefit systems by inverting the model on actual effective tax rates, as if existing systems were optimal according to some Mirrleesian social planner. Actual distributions of incomes before and after redistribution are obtained using a pan-European tax-benefit microsimulation model. Results are discussed in the light of standard classifications of welfare regimes in Europe. There appears to be a clear coincidence of high decommodification and high Rawlsianism in the Scandinavian, social-democratically influenced welfare states (Denmark). There is an equally clear coincidence of low decommodification and utilitarianism in the Anglo–Saxon liberal model (UK) and in the Southern European welfare states (Italy and Spain). Finally, the Continental European countries (Finland, Germany and France) group closely together in the middle of the scale, as corporatist and etatist.
Type of Material
Working Paper
Publisher
University College Dublin. School of Economics
Series
UCD Centre for Economic Research Working Paper Series
WP08/16
Copyright (Published Version)
University College Dublin. School of Economics, 2008
Keywords
  • Optimal income taxati...

  • Tax-benefit policy

  • Microsimulation

  • Comparative social po...

  • Welfare state models

Classification
H11
H21
D63
C63
Subject – LCSH
Taxation--Mathematical models
Social policy
Welfare state
Web versions
http://www.ucd.ie/economics/research/papers/2008/WP08.16.pdf
Language
English
Status of Item
Not peer reviewed
This item is made available under a Creative Commons License
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/1.0/
Owning collection
Economics Working Papers & Policy Papers
Views
1993
Last Week
1
Last Month
1
Acquisition Date
Feb 2, 2023
View Details
Downloads
307
Last Month
266
Acquisition Date
Feb 2, 2023
View Details
google-scholar
University College Dublin Research Repository UCD
The Library, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4
Phone: +353 (0)1 716 7583
Fax: +353 (0)1 283 7667
Email: mailto:research.repository@ucd.ie
Guide: http://libguides.ucd.ie/rru

Built with DSpace-CRIS software - Extension maintained and optimized by 4Science

  • Cookie settings
  • Privacy policy
  • End User Agreement