ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews the empirical evidence on the impacts and outcomes of welfare conditionality, not only its efficacy as a technique in achieving programme goals but also the wider implications of its deployment for both those targeted by conditional interventions and broader society. It examines the behavioural assumptions underpinning conditional welfare programmes, and critiques of these assumptions, which are intrinsic to the plausibility of the 'theory of change' underpinning the anticipated effects of such approaches. The chapter explains the evaluative evidence on the effectiveness of various techniques and programmes of conditional welfare funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). It describes the potential unintended consequences of conditionality, taking into account relevant 'spill-over' and 'scar' effects, and explores the consideration of the issue of costs. Finally, the chapter highlights the range of alternatives to welfare conditionality that exist as possible means to achieve behavioural change goals.
