UNEMPLOYMENT AND ECONOMIC HARDSHIP - A COMBINED MACROLEVEL AND MICROLEVEL ANALYSIS OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN UNEMPLOYMENT AND MEANS-TESTED SOCIAL ASSISTANCE IN SWEDEN

In an era of mass unemployment, the economic consequences of unemploym ent for the unemployed are of central relevance for the analysis of in equality and social stratification. This paper analyses the individual -level economic consequences of unemployment and poverty in Sweden, co ncentrating on economic hardship and poverty measured in terms of reci piency of means-tested social assistance. By use of aggregate time-ser ies analysis of the period between 1924 and 1993, and an analysis of i ndividual-level longitudinal interview data from 1990 to 1992, it is p ossible to integrate macro-and micro-data in the analysis. The paper s hows how such an integration can be used to cross-check results from t hese two levels and thereby to mitigate different methodological probl ems associated with analyses at only one level. Micro-level results ar e found to be congruent with the macro-level outcomes indicating that it is of crucial importance to separate the stock from the flow of wel fare recipients in order to understand the processes behind unemployme nt, persistent hardship, and dependency on means-tested social assista nce.