Research on the Choice of Public Assistance Provider

2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 18K12697
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 06010:Politics-related
• Research Institution: Prefectural University of Kumamoto
• Principal Investigator: SEKI Tomohiro 熊本県立大学, 総合管理学部, 講師 (60796192)
• Project Period (FY): 2018-04-01 – 2023-03-31
• Keywords: 政策実施 / 生活保護

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The purpose of this study is to clarify how the policy designer selects the policy provider and how the policy outcomes differ depending on the different providers, in the public assistance policy. Concretely, I analyzed the policy making process of the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the policy implementation process of local governments. For the former, I was unable to conduct an adequate documentation survey due to the influence of covid-19, but for the latter, I attempted to categorize front-line caseworkers by obtaining survey data from a local government. Such individual-level data analysis has the potential to bring innovation to the study of street-level bureaucracy.

Free Research Field

行政学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究の成果は、学術的には政策実施研究に、社会的には生活保護政策の理解に貢献した。政策実施研究では、第一線行政職員が広範な裁量を持つことが強調されてきたが、本研究は第一線行政職員のタイプによって裁量の行使にバリエーションが生じる可能性を指摘した。こうした議論が妥当であれば、なぜ生活保護の資格審査や自立支援が自治体や職員によって異なることがあるのかを理解するのに役立つ。