Understanding the experiences of basic income recipients

Smith-Carrier received a SSHRC Insight Grant, led by Robertson (Ontario Institute of Technology) and with co-applicant Power (Queen’s University) to explore the experiences of basic income recipients.

The provision of a basic income (BI) is in the spotlight globally as a public policy to provide greater income security. In 2016, a Liberal government in Ontario initiated Canada's first BI project since the MINCOME project in the 1970's (Forget, 2011). The BI Pilot was launched in April, 2017 and reached full enrollment in 2018, involving 4,000 recipients in Hamilton, Lindsay and Thunder Bay. In July, 2018 the incoming Conservative government, despite indications of support for the program, announced its cancellation and that recipients' funding would end in March 2019.

The proposed research documents the impact of Ontario's BI Pilot program on a sample of participants. The original BI Pilot was intended to run for a three years to allow for robust data collection on a host of social, education, employment and health decisions. No data were collected before the cancellation of the BI Project and that research was cancelled. At the time of cancellation, BI participants would have participated from 4-14 months because of a rolling recruitment. Documenting participants' experiences with the promise of basic income, receiving it and then having it withdrawn will provide valuable insights into the impact of the program on participants' lives. These are important voices to be documented and heard in wider debates on strategies to eradicate poverty using programs that provide individuals with an adequate minimum income floor.

The research study employs a robust mixed methods design (Creswell, 2010). Informed by an extensive literature review, a survey has been designed to be distributed through the Basic Income Canada Network website to more than 1,000 listserv members who are in the BI Pilot. Using a convenience sampling approach (Patton, 2002), we will invite participants to complete the online survey through this website and using flyers posted in local newspapers, food banks and community centers (total sample: roughly n=250-500). At the conclusion of the online survey, participants will be asked to leave contact information should they wish to participate in a semi-structured in-person interview. The second phase of the research will be the interviews (estimated n=25-30) to be analyzed using thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006) and narrative analysis (Riessman, 2008). Participants will be asked about their experiences before, during and after involvement in the BI Pilot. There may be challenges as BI recipients may be reluctant to trust the research team and resist participation either online or in person so we will work through trusted community organizations. Above all, the research team will respect and closely protect the anonymity and confidentiality of all participants.

This research will make important contributions to the literature. First, it will provide a strong mixed methods study that highlights the voices of participants at the center of the BI Pilot program. These are voices under-represented in the extant literature: specifically, individuals among the working poor, precariously employed, unemployed, or living on social assistance. The contribution of this research for knowledge advancement on mechanisms to promote income security will thus be significant.

We anticipate that our findings will be published in peer-reviewed journals, presented at national and international conferences, discussed in meetings with politicians, reported in the media and shared in the general public. Beyond these avenues for knowledge mobilization, there are broader areas of potential benefit. This research will give voice to those who experienced income stability and then disruption. This research allows their perspectives to become part of the conversations that will inform future income security policy-making in Canada.