Exiting National Anti-Poverty Campaign, Social Support, and Improved Mental Health

TL;DR

This study examines how ending China's national anti-poverty campaign affects mental health and social support, revealing mental wellbeing improvements and stronger social ties despite unchanged income levels.

Contribution

It provides novel evidence on the psychological and social effects of policy exit strategies using a natural experiment and regression discontinuity design.

Findings

Exiting the campaign improves mental wellbeing

Stronger perceived social and family support after exit

Income and material conditions remain largely unchanged

Abstract

We study the psychological and social impacts of exiting a national anti-poverty campaign, leveraging China's phase-out of its national poverty assistance as a natural experiment. Using a regression discontinuity design, we find that exiting the national campaign improves mental wellbeing. These improvements are accompanied by stronger social and family ties -- such as greater perceived support and communication, while income and material conditions remain largely unchanged. Our findings offer insights into the design of policy exits and underscore the importance of incorporating measures that sustain community- and family-based support systems when implementing or ending assistance programs.