Conoscenza e percezione delle misure di sostegno al reddito in Italia

Following the repeal of the Italian «Reddito di cittadinanza» (Rdc) and the simultaneous increase in poverty and inequalities in Italy, this contribution aims to better understand the relationship between citizens and the income support measures by deepening both people’s level of knowledge and people’s attitudes towards their universalisation. Starting with an analysis of the main theoretical contributions on the topic of asymmetric information and the attitudes towards universalistic welfare, we present some evidence from the data of the Inapp-Plus survey. The descriptive analysis shows changes concerning knowledge and predisposition (favour or dissent) towards income support measures. Empirical evidence leads us to consider the lack of knowledge of social policies on the part of the most vulnerable categories of the population as a phenomenon of considerable importance. On the other hand, our analyses do not show dissent to the income support measures in general terms but only by a minimum share of people, particularly the richest and least educated ones. We therefore need policies and communication strategies suitable for attracting vulnerable families, investing more in the role of local social services, and raising awareness among the population with adequate tools.