Government scheme overload? Take up and targeting in a multi-scheme context

Low- and middle-income countries offer a wide variety of social protection programs meant to target vulnerable populations, and vulnerable individuals may be eligible for multiple welfare benefits. Despite the high volume of social protection policies, take-up remains low. Instances of incomplete take-up may be more prevalent in areas in which multiple benefits exist and may be driven by a lack of information, social stigma, or application ordeals. These barriers may be multiplied for each benefit an individual is eligible for. Furthermore, when given too many choices of social assistance benefits, individuals may defer applying for social programs or default to applying to sub-optimal programs. This can be categorized as a deliberation cost. 

In India, there are a plethora of social protection schemes and low levels of take-up when it comes to internal migrants, a particularly vulnerable population. The researcher proposes varying the cadence and structure of information on benefits provided to migrants. This may highlight if migrants who receive information on one benefits scheme at a time are more or less likely to take-up benefits than migrants who receive information on all schemes at once. The researchers will explore how beneficiary preferences can be incorporated into the way information is communicated (e.g., ordering the schemes by category, application ease, monetary amounts, etc.) and how demographics impact individuals’ choices.