Institutional Features of the Programs for Unemployed People and the Correlated Chances for Solidarity

The welfare state has not only problems to ensure the financial basis for its future continuity, but also to secure the social acceptance of its institutions. Besides the willingness to pay for the different programs it is also essential that the underlying normative principles of public assistance programs are approved. It is the aim of the dissertation project to show that the social acceptance of the three programs for unemployment compensation in Germany ("Arbeitslosengeld", "Arbeitslosenhilfe" and "Sozialhilfe") is influenced by institutional features, in particular the degree of redistribution caused by these programs which is by far the most important feature. Depending on the kind and the extent of redistribution realized by the three programs different forms of solidarity are required from the persons who finance them. Furthermore it is analysed whether institutional features like the level of benefits and the payment duration lead to longer spells of unemployment by providing incentives to stop job search activities.