Effect of Expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit to Americans without Dependent Children on Psychological Distress (Paycheck Plus): a Randomized Controlled Trial

Author:

Courtin Emilie1,Allen Heidi L2,Katz Lawrence F3,Miller Cynthia4,Aloisi Kali5,Muennig Peter A1

Affiliation:

1. Department of Public Health, Environments and Society, Faculty of Public Health and Policy, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom

2. School of Social Work, Columbia University, New York City, United States

3. Department of Economics, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States

4. MDRC, Los Angeles, California, United States

5. Department of Statistics, University of Michigan, Ann Harbor, Michigan, United States

Abstract

Abstract Anti-poverty policies have the potential to improve mental health. We conducted a randomized trial to investigate whether a fourfold increase in the Earned Income Tax Credit for low-income Americans without dependent children would reduce psychological distress relative to the current federal credit (Paycheck Plus, New York City site). Between 2013 and 2014, 5,968 participants were recruited; 2,997 were randomly assigned to the treatment group and 2,971 were assigned to the control group. Survey data were collected 32 months post-randomization (N=4,749). Eligibility for the program increased employment by 1.9 percentage points and after-bonus earnings by 6% ($635 per year) on average over the three years. Treatment was associated with a marginally statistically-significant decline in psychological distress relative to the control group (-0.30 points; 95% CI, -0.63 to 0.03; p=0.076). Women in the treated group experienced a half-a-point reduction in psychological distress (-0.55; 95% CI, -0.97 to -0.13; p=0.032) and noncustodial parents reported a 1.36 point reduction (95% CI, -2.24 to -0.49; p = 0.011) in psychological distress. An expansion of a large anti-poverty program to individuals without dependent children reduced psychological distress for women and noncustodial parents – the groups who benefitted the most in terms of increased after-bonus earnings.

Publisher

Oxford University Press (OUP)

Subject

Epidemiology

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