How public subsidy programs are associated with intergenerational money transfers

The other work that won second place in the CISS´s Inter-American Award for Research on Social Security 2010 was made by Gilbert Brenes-Camacho and William Dow and is entitled "How public subsidy programs are associated with intergenerational money transfers". The paper explores the association between changes in the amount of subsidies given to the elderly and the amount of money transfers given and received by them. Analyses are based on data from CRELES, a longitudinal study of aging in Costa Rica. They find that, after the increase, non-contribution pension earners significantly received on average less money and gave on average more money than other groups. Intergenerational transfers can be affected by Welfare policies, and money transfers towards the elderly might be used to compensate for economic need.