POL SCI 149 Midterm

POL SCI 149 (Welfare) Midterm Flashcards

Welfare

Assistance to those who are poor, sick, or unemployed.

Social welfare

Government-funded programs aimed at providing assistance to individuals based on their need or situation.

Fiscal welfare

Assistance provided through tax credits, deductions, or exemptions.

Occupational welfare

Benefits tied to a person’s job, which may be mandated or subsidized by the state.

Means-tested programs

Programs that have a financial component determining eligibility.

What is the difference between public and private welfare?

Public: Benefits provided by government (SNAP). Private: Benefits delivered by private actors (Charitable organizations with no public funding, unsubsidized paid sick leave) Public-private mixed: Private benefits supported by government subsidies or regulation (Employer-sponsored health insurance, ACA marketplace insurance, charter schools).

What is Hacker's main argument?

The U.S. has a divided welfare state: people receive protection through both public programs and private benefits. The government subsidizes and regulates private benefits.

What is Hacker's continuum of welfare provision?

Direct public provision → Indirect provision → Regulation → Subsidies and incentives → Purely private provision.

What are critical junctures? (Hacker)

Choices in critical moments that changed our path (crises, elections, changes in party control, major reforms). A period when major policy changes become possible, such as the creation of Medicare and Medicaid in 1965. (Hacker)

What is path dependence? (Hacker)

Little decisions made early on that have big effects later on. Earlier policy choices create institutions and interests that limit future choices.

How does path dependence work? (Hacker)

Policy decision → institution → interests develop to protect it → new political constraints → limited choices.

Why does the delivery of welfare benefits matter?

Because the delivery of the benefit affects the politics, who gains power, and what future reforms are possible.

What are the four differences between public and private welfare?

More private welfare means:

• More third parties: Companies have more control.

• Less required participation: People aren't automatically covered.

• Less visibility: Harder to see costs and who is responsible.

• Less equality: Benefits are distributed less equally.

Why does the U.S. spend so much on welfare but have unequal healthcare access?

The U.S. spends heavily through both public and private systems. Benefits are fragmented, often tied to employment, and unequally distributed, leaving many without coverage despite high spending. Coverage varies state to state depending on state Medicaid policies.

What is the difference between Medicare and Medicaid?

Medicare: Federal insurance mainly for people 65+ and certain disabilities. Medicaid: Joint federal-state, means-tested program for low-income individuals and other eligible groups.

What was the significance of the ACA Medicaid expansion?

Expanded eligibility to most non-elderly adults earning below 138% of the federal poverty level.

What was NFIB v. Sebelius (2012)?

SCOTUS ruled threatening states with the loss of existing Medicaid funding was overly coercive. Medicaid expansion became optional.

What is federalism?

Division of power between federal and state governments. The federal government provides Medicaid funding and broad rules, while states administer and implement programs.

What are the benefits and disadvantages of federalism?

Benefits: Flexibility, state innovation, responsiveness to local needs. Disadvantages: Unequal access, inconsistent benefits, and differences in eligibility and administration.

What is Michener's main argument?

Medicaid policy produces unequal politics and deepens already yawning racial, class, and geographic disparities in the United States.

How does federalism influence political participation?

Federalism → state discretion → different Medicaid experiences → different views of government → differences in political participation.

What is unequal citizenship?

Some people participate in politics less than others, influenced by their experiences with Medicaid.

Why does federalism complicate government accountability?

The complex federal-state arrangement makes it difficult for the public to know who is responsible for Medicaid problems.

What is Gilens's main argument?

Americans generally support helping the poor but oppose programs labeled welfare. Opposition is strongly influenced by deservingness and racial stereotypes.

What is individualism?

A belief that the individual matters more than the community. People should be self-reliant rather than depend on the government. “Pull yourself up by your bootstraps”

What is self-interest?

Watching out for oneself. The theory predicts that people will support welfare less during economic downturns.

Does Gilens find support for individualism or self-interest?

No. Americans believe the government should help the poor, and support for welfare often increases during economic downturns.

What is deservingness?

Public judgments about whether welfare recipients merit assistance, often based on perceived need, responsibility, and willingness to work.

How does work ethic influence welfare attitudes?

People who are perceived as hardworking are viewed as more deserving. Beliefs that recipients are lazy increase opposition to welfare.

How do racial stereotypes influence welfare attitudes?

People who believe Black Americans are lazy are more likely to support cutting welfare spending.

What is the racialization of poverty?

The association of poverty and welfare with particular racial groups, reinforcing assumptions about recipients and deservingness.

What role does the media play in racializing poverty?

Gilens finds that African Americans became overrepresented in media portrayals of poverty, particularly after a major shift around 1965.

What is the difference between health and healthcare?

Health: A person's well-being. Healthcare: Medical services provided to individuals. Receiving healthcare does not guarantee good health.

Why is healthcare different from other welfare programs?

Healthcare is connected to health, which shapes individuals' ability to pursue opportunities. Health also depends on broader social and environmental factors.

What is Daniels's main argument?

Healthcare plays a crucial role in shaping opportunity. Without good health, individuals may be unable to pursue their goals.

What is fair equality of opportunity?

Everyone should have a fair chance to pursue their goals. Healthcare helps protect opportunities that illness and disability might restrict.

Daniels's framework for fair allocation of limited healthcare resources:

• 1. Publicity - must be known

• 2. Relevance - reasoning must be reasonable

• 3. Appeals - individuals can dispute decision

• 4. Enforcement - ensure rules 1-3 are enforced.

What is Buchanan's main argument?

Society should guarantee a decent minimum of healthcare rather than unlimited access to every available treatment.

How do Buchanan and Daniels differ?

Buchanan: Focuses on justifying a decent minimum of healthcare. Daniels: Focuses on how healthcare protects fair equality of opportunity.

What is Galarneau's main argument?

MLK's concerns about injustice in health extend beyond access to medical treatment. Broader social inequalities also shape health outcomes.

What is racialization in healthcare politics?

When racial attitudes become connected to opinions about healthcare policies.

What is priming?

Making certain issues, values, or attributes more important to influence how people evaluate a policy.

What is Hopkins's main finding?

Healthcare attitudes are stable and largely unrelated to views of who benefits, even when racial cues are used to prime respondents.

How do Gilens and Hopkins differ?

Gilens: Racial stereotypes strongly influence traditional welfare attitudes. Hopkins: Short-term racial cues have limited influence on established ACA attitudes.

What is Vargas Nunez's main argument?

Undocumented immigrants are often viewed as less deserving of healthcare, but fairness and public health arguments can increase support for their access. Think 2020.

What did Vargas Nunez find about work ethic?

Undocumented immigrants remained less deserving in respondents' eyes even with strong work histories. Work ethic alone does not overcome prejudice.

What did Vargas Nunez find about fairness and self-interest?

Both fairness arguments and public health/self-interest arguments significantly increased support for undocumented immigrants' healthcare access.

What is the deservingness heuristic?

A mental shortcut used to determine who deserves government assistance.

Why are sick people often viewed as more deserving?

Illness is often viewed as outside an individual's control, while unemployment is more likely to be judged through personal responsibility and work ethic.

What is a valence issue versus a position issue?

Valence issue: Most people agree on the general goal. Position issue: People disagree about what the government should do.

Why is healthcare often treated as a valence issue?

There is broad agreement that sick individuals deserve assistance, even when people disagree about specific healthcare policies.

How do Gilens and Jensen & Petersen explain deservingness differently?

Gilens: Emphasizes work ethic and racial stereotypes in welfare opposition. Jensen & Petersen: Emphasize why illness is perceived as less controllable and therefore more deserving.

How do Hopkins and Vargas Nunez differ?

Hopkins: Short-term racial cues have limited effects on ACA attitudes. Vargas Nunez: Fairness and public health arguments can increase support for immigrant healthcare access.

What is particularistic resistance (Michener)?

When individuals challenge government decisions that threaten their access to benefits.

How is particularistic resistance different from traditional political participation?

It focuses on individual needs through complaints, appeals, and hearings rather than broader political or policy change.

What is the Second Face of the State?

Government exercises power through bureaucracy, surveillance, regulation, and control—not just elections and laws.

What influences particularistic resistance?

Resources, race and class, government responsiveness, and county-level differences.

Why do immigrants experience unequal healthcare access?

Federal eligibility restrictions, state policy differences, financial barriers, language barriers, and immigration-related fears.

What role do states play in immigrant healthcare access?

States can expand coverage beyond federal requirements using their own funding, producing different healthcare opportunities across states.

Why doesn't eligibility guarantee healthcare access?

Even eligible individuals may encounter administrative obstacles, fear, financial barriers, and difficulties navigating programs.

How does immigrant healthcare access connect to federalism?

Different federal and state eligibility rules create geographic inequality in who receives healthcare and under what conditions.

How do Hacker and Michener explain unequal healthcare access?

Hacker: The U.S. welfare state developed through a divided public-private system shaped by earlier policy choices. Michener: Federalism creates differences in Medicaid access, experiences, and political participation.

Why does the public support healthcare more than traditional welfare?

Healthcare is often viewed as helping people whose circumstances are beyond their control. Traditional welfare is more heavily influenced by assumptions about work ethic, individual responsibility, and race.

What factors shape welfare access in the United States?

Public-private structures, federalism, eligibility restrictions, racial and class inequalities, public opinion, deservingness, and administrative barriers.

Hacker

The U.S. has a divided welfare state: welfare comes from both public programs and private benefits supported by government.

Michener

Federalism gives states control over Medicaid, creating unequal healthcare access and political participation. Not everyone receiving welfare can actually access that welfare.

Gilens

Opposition to welfare is driven by beliefs about recipients' work ethic and racial stereotypes, not simply individualism or self-interest. People's beliefs about welfare recipients' work ethic are a major factor in welfare opposition. Racial stereotypes influence these beliefs.

Daniels

Healthcare is essential for fair equality of opportunity because good health allows people to pursue their goals.

Buchanan

Everyone should be guaranteed a decent minimum of healthcare, but not unlimited access to every treatment.

Galarneau

Health inequality goes beyond medical care; broader social and racial inequalities also affect people's health. (MLK) (education, income, housing, etc.)

Hopkins

Healthcare attitudes are relatively stable, and short-term racial messages have limited influence on ACA opinions.

Vargas-Nunez

Undocumented immigrants are viewed as less deserving of healthcare, but fairness and public health arguments can increase support.

Jensen & Petersen

People view sick individuals as more deserving of help because illness is often seen as outside their control. (Goes back to hunter/gatherer days)

What is Mead's main argument?

Welfare programs are too permissive and should require recipients to work. Jobs generally exist, but some people reject low-paying or undesirable jobs.

What is Wilson's main argument?

Poverty and unemployment are largely caused by structural economic barriers outside individuals' control, such as declining manufacturing jobs and limited access to employment.

How do Mead and Wilson differ on work requirements?

Mead: Supports mandatory workfare to encourage personal responsibility. Wilson: Opposes work requirements without adequate job opportunities and emphasizes government job creation.

What is workfare?

Requiring welfare recipients to work or participate in employment programs to receive benefits.

What are spatial mismatch and skills mismatch?

Spatial mismatch: Jobs are geographically separated from people who need them. Skills mismatch: Workers lack qualifications required for available jobs.

What is Gollust & Lynch's main argument?

Public support for government-funded healthcare depends heavily on whether people believe individuals are personally responsible for their illnesses.

How do causal attributions affect healthcare attitudes (Gollust & Lynch)?

Behavioral causes: More blame and less support. Systemic causes: More government support. Biological causes: Outside individual control, but less support than systemic explanations.

What were Gollust & Lynch's main experimental findings?

Unhealthy behaviors led to more blame and less support for medical costs. Race had little effect, but working-class individuals received less blame than middle-class individuals.

What factors influenced explanations for health inequalities (Gollust & Lynch)?

Non-white respondents were more likely to blame systemic factors. Republicans and conservatives were more likely to attribute differences to behaviors and biology, respectively.

Why does assigning blame for illness matter for healthcare access?

Blaming individuals for poor health can lead to reduced support for government-funded healthcare and justify excluding people from coverage.

What is Michener's definition of particularistic resistance?

“When policy beneficiaries take oppositional action in response to administrative decisions that threaten their access to valuable resources.”

What three factors influence particularistic resistance (Michener)?

1. Perceptions of socioeconomic status 2. Perceptions of race 3. Perceptions of situational responsiveness