5. Social Effects of Basic Income

Mays discusses the social effects of Basic Income in terms of a safety net that stretches beyond economic security. Such social effects as social cohesion and inclusion, and a sense of community and solidarity, are discussed at the level of the individual, the community, and society as a whole; and each of the three sections is accompanied by a case study about people with disabilities. The chapter finds that the social principles underlying a Basic Income scheme would affect the scheme’s effects, which means that it is important to establish those principles at the beginning of the design phase; and the chapter suggests that an understanding of the social effects of Basic income could counter normative resistance to the notion of Basic Income.