PUBPOL 109CNS
Risk, Rules, and the American Social Safety Net
Lisa A. Gennetian
Description from DukeHub
This course examines poverty in the United States through the lens of risk and rules, and the historical to contemporary formation and evolution of the social safety net in the U.S.: how does poverty, risk, and public policy shape life chances? Using economic reasoning and quantitative evidence, students will be introduced to various major safety net policies in the U.S., including the role of basic income, cash transfers, and tax credits. COVID-19 will serve as a case study in crisis response in bolstering the social safety net, revealing both the strengths and limits of public policy under conditions of extreme economic and public health uncertainty.
Skills
- policy and lawdescription: "policy" and 2 more
AI-resilient: 2 of 5
- No: Physical, lab or field work
- No: Live work with people
- Yes: Judgment someone is accountable for · "risk"
- No: A craft you practice with your hands or body
- Yes: Small, in-person format · seminar, 18 seats per section
The checks lean on Microsoft Research, Working with AI (2025), which found generative AI applies least to physical work and hands-on work with people. A signal, not a promise. How the score works
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