Cash transfer programs

a review of comparative evidence using textometry

Abstract

The study focuses on cash transfer programs established in the following countries: Brazil, Mexico, India and South Africa. The first step was to bring a brief review of the history of each program, as well as comparative tables of their specificities. After this first approach, we performed a text mining on each program. For that, the free software Iramuteq was used, which brought practicality to the lexicometric analysis. This comparative search resulted in a panoramic view and established a relevant analytical framework of the selected programs. Despite having the same political nature, the programs have many differences in their design and in the results they generate for the beneficiaries, highlighting the importance of policy makers thinking carefully about their objectives and the mechanisms of evaluation and control. In conclusion, the research provided new approaches to analyzing research gaps within the themes and contributed to improving knowledge about cash transfer programs.