They say money can’t buy happiness, but money can certainly increase access for people to have their basic needs met, and beyond. Economic stability opens doors to education, better employment, and more balanced mental health. When you’re not worried about how to make ends meet, you can focus that mental energy elsewhere.
People’s lives can change for the better in tangible and measurable ways, as shown by the Unconditional Cash Study.
Researchers gave people $1,000 for 3 years with no strings attached, and the results on how they spent the money were released.
The study was funded by OpenResearch, a nonprofit founded by Sam Altman, who’s the CEO of OpenAI. The results offer insight into what happens when people are given a guaranteed basic income.
From 2020 until 2023, 3,000 people were given $1,000 a month to spend however they wanted. Study participants ranged from 21 to 40 years old, with an average annual income of around $30,000. The control group was given $50 a month.
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Immediate findings from the study showed that people spent the money to cover their basic needs and support other people.
With the extra $1,000 a month, people increased spending on food, rent, and transportation.
They used the money to help others get their basic needs covered, as well. The study results revealed that spending on support went up by $22 a month.
After covering their basic needs, study participants used the money to invest in themselves and open doors that might have otherwise remained closed.
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Fourteen percent of people reported spending the money on education or job training, showing how having your basic needs covered can create space for other possibilities.
People who received $1000 a month were more able to plan for their future, in general. Recipients were 5% more likely to have a budget.
The study also found that by the third year, Black participants were 26% more likely to start or help start a business, which highlights how having access to capital can benefit people’s future livelihoods.
The concept of Universal Basic Income (UBI) has been around since the late 18th century, but as Stanford Basic Income Lab noted, the capitalist structure of our economy did not allow it to be more than a utopian ideal until recently. Basically, the economic inequality of our current global market combined with the advancement of AI technologies and robotic automation replacing jobs have discussions and research about UBI at the forefront of some economists’ minds.
Getting $1,000 a month allowed participants to have more agency over their lives.
As one recipient said, having access to extra income “Was more about independence than anything. The empowerment of being able to not say ‘Uh mom, I need you to help me with my phone bill’ … it was just not having to ask for help.”
Participants were able to do more than just cover their rent — they were able to change their living situations for the better.
Eleven percent were able to move neighborhoods, 23% actively searched for housing, and 5% reported being more likely to pay for housing as opposed to other living arrangements.
On average, study recipients worked 1.3 hours less per week, which could be framed as an argument against providing a basic guaranteed income nationwide. Yet working less doesn’t automatically mean that people are doing less for their communities.
Having access to income with a more open schedule lets people parent in ways they might not otherwise be able to. It helps support people who can’t work a traditional 9 to 5, like those who are disabled, chronically ill, or act as caregivers.
The preliminary results of the study make it clear that people across the U.S. are struggling to pay for groceries and cover their rent in an increasingly expensive market.
Given an extra hand, people not only think about themselves, they think about the needs of others, building up their community while they better their own lives.
Alexandra Blogier is a writer on YourTango’s news and entertainment team. She covers social issues, pop culture and all things to do with the entertainment industry.
