The Practice of Applying the Social Contract: Topical Issues

Abstract

The problem of poverty has remained one of the most pressing and urgent for several decades. The Russian Federation, like many foreign countries, is taking various measures to provide state support to citizens who find themselves in difficult life situations. One of the instruments of social policy to support citizens in need is a social contract, which makes it possible to increase the efficiency of the state social assistance system. A social contract is concluded with citizens in need or low-income families whose total income is below the subsistence level. The provisions on the conditions for material assistance prescribe the obligations and responsibilities of the parties. Through a social contract, the state supports people who are stronger and more motivated to get out of poverty, thereby activating the potential of low-income people. The article examines the practice of using a social contract in Russia and abroad, including a detailed analysis of the results of the implementation of a social contract in the Khabarovsk Territory. In addition, the author points out the reasons for the disinterest of the needy layers of the population in this kind of state support.