| Resumen: |
Stigma may impede participation in social safety net programs and impose utility costs on individuals already receiving benefits. We use a nationally representative survey with descriptive and experimental components to document five facts about stigma and participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). First, many individuals hold stigma-related beliefs about SNAP participation, and grocery stores are a setting with high potential for stigma. Second, individuals who currently participate in SNAP and who have more close acquaintances who use SNAP have lower levels of stigma. Third, most respondents overestimate how much others would judge SNAP participation, with participants overestimating more than non-participants. In the experimental portion of the survey, we find that randomized interventions have heterogeneous effects: they increase stigma among Republicans and current SNAP participants and decrease stigma among non-participants and Democrats. Finally, one intervention that addresses a common reciprocity concern increases interest in take-up among eligible non-participants but decreases support for SNAP spending across the whole sample. Together, these findings suggest the importance of stigma and social norms for influencing take-up of a large, targeted transfer program. |
