So your gotcha is comparing the relative ranking of two countries in the top 10? A top 10 that has multiple European counties with robust safety nets in it?
I don’t think this data is saying what you think. There’s no evidence of disincentivization.
This reminds me of the people that complain that UBI causes people to work less, and when you dig into it, they stopped working overtime, or went back to school, retired, or started a family. You know, engage in behaviors that society says it values.
Also, I would be really surprised if one couldn't make the US drop in those rankings by subtracting San Francisco and the bizarro-world VC tech economy that centers on it.
Ow do you explain that?