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Articles 1 - 23 of 23
Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
Impact Of The Personal Responsibility And Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (Prwora) On Family Functions, Benjamin Little
Impact Of The Personal Responsibility And Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (Prwora) On Family Functions, Benjamin Little
Merge
This paper attempts to provide an in depth look into the long-term affect that the policy, The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) of 1996 has had on families of non-violent drug offenders.
Strategies For Increasing Self-Efficacy In Long-Term Welfare Recipients, Crystal Mcclure
Strategies For Increasing Self-Efficacy In Long-Term Welfare Recipients, Crystal Mcclure
Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies
With the imposition of lifetime limitations on an individual's ability to receive cash assistance, there is a group of long-term Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients that have approached the lifetime limitation without becoming gainfully employed. Many long term TANF recipients report low levels of self-efficacy which inhibits their ability to successfully transition off welfare and into the workforce. However, most welfare-to-work programs do not address the emotional or psychological well-being of their clients, instead they focus on job placement and job readiness skills. The purpose of this sequential–exploratory mixed methods study is to identify the primary barriers to …
Punishment, Pathology Or Possibility: Caseworker Discretion, Mental Illness, And Welfare Sanctions, Andrew Kishel
Punishment, Pathology Or Possibility: Caseworker Discretion, Mental Illness, And Welfare Sanctions, Andrew Kishel
Master of Social Work Clinical Research Papers
This study was designed to explore the ways that caseworkers in the Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP) make decisions in situations of client noncompliance. The research question was: what factors impact the decision-making of MFIP caseworkers around the question of noncompliance? Ten in-person interviews were conducted, recorded, coded and analyzed. Caseworkers identified that client noncompliance can be caused by mental illness or environmental factors in clients’ lives such as lack of community capital and transportation infrastructure or domestic violence. Caseworkers also identified that client noncompliance is frequently caused by factors internal to the MFIP bureaucracy, which clients have little influence …
A Systematic Review Of The Primary Material Hardships Of Post-Welfare Reform Tanf Recipients, Matthew Schwer
A Systematic Review Of The Primary Material Hardships Of Post-Welfare Reform Tanf Recipients, Matthew Schwer
Master of Social Work Clinical Research Papers
Through this research, I sought to better understand how TANF recipients in the post-welfare reform US experience the material hardships of housing instability, unemployment, and phone disconnection. I hypothesized that TANF under-serves its recipients, and needs strengthening to truly alleviate material hardships. I used a systematic review design to strengthen my understanding of these hardships. Systematic reviews seek to answer a specific question by gathering, analyzing, and synthesizing pre-existing research, across different types of studies, related to the question. This review incorporates research found on social work related search engines and research institutes, always involving the population of current and …
Second Generation Parenting: Grandparents Who Receive Tanf, Vanessa Robinson-Dooley, Nancy Kropf
Second Generation Parenting: Grandparents Who Receive Tanf, Vanessa Robinson-Dooley, Nancy Kropf
Nancy P. Kropf
A review of the scholarly literature indicates that the number of grandparents who are second generation parents (e.g., raising their grandchildren) has increased dramatically. These grandparents often return to parenting with a variety of financial and physical health issues that need to be addressed within the context of their caregiving role. The current study is a secondary data analysis of a sample of grandparent caregivers that received TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) using data from a larger study conducted on welfare reform. The research is primarily descriptive, providing a summary of these grandparents' functioning. Finding and implications for understanding …
Paperwork First, Not Work First: How Caseworkers Use Paperwork To Feel Effective, Tifany Taylor
Paperwork First, Not Work First: How Caseworkers Use Paperwork To Feel Effective, Tifany Taylor
The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare
A great deal of research has explored welfare agency caseworkers, especially how they use discretion. Paperwork in county welfare bureaucracies, however, is often taken-for-granted by caseworkers and researchers studying welfare. In this case study of a county welfare program in rural North Carolina, I focus on how caseworkers use paperwork through document analysis, interviews, and observation data. My findings illustrate caseworkers spend far more time on paperwork than they actually spend assisting program participants find employment. Finally, I show how caseworkers use paperwork to feel effective in a job that offers little to help clients move from welfare to work.
Two Sources Of Child Care Assistance And Their Relationship With Maternal Employment : Evidence From The Fragile Families And Child Well-Being Study, Manrong Chen
Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)
This study aims to understand how child care assistance from informal social support networks and from governmental sources relate to the employment of mothers with young child(ren), and how the two sources of child care assistance relate to each other. Both the availability and utilization of child care assistance are investigated.
The Impact Of Transportation And Childcare Assistance On Self-Sufficiency In Families First Participants In Tennessee, Debra Anne Wolfe Shumaker
The Impact Of Transportation And Childcare Assistance On Self-Sufficiency In Families First Participants In Tennessee, Debra Anne Wolfe Shumaker
Doctoral Dissertations
States are not required to provide subsidies for childcare and transportation, but at the time of this writing all provided some supplements to TANF participants who were working, looking for work, or attending school. However, there has been little assessment of the effectiveness of these programs. Using data from a longitudinal study on Families First participants in the state of Tennessee, this exploratory study addresses the questions of whether transportation and childcare supplements contribute to the ability of TANF participants to move off welfare and support their families adequately through their own efforts, and whether outcomes from these services differ …
Should I Stay Or Should I Go? Why Applicants Leave The Extended Welfare Application Process, Marci Ybarra
Should I Stay Or Should I Go? Why Applicants Leave The Extended Welfare Application Process, Marci Ybarra
The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare
Since welfare reform of 1996, the use of extended application periods as a condition of welfare participation has become increasingly popular. Extended application periods include mandatory work activities and caseworker meetings for a period of time as a condition of and prerequisite to eligibility for welfare services. While much scholarly work has focused on welfare participants, we know comparatively less about those who apply for services but ultimately do not participate or receive benefits. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with a random sample of twenty recent welfare applicants in the state of Wisconsin who did not complete the extended welfare application …
Self-Reported Family Income And Expenditure Patterns For A Cohort Of Tanf-Reliant African American Women: Outcomes From A Longitudinal Study In Miami-Dade County, Florida, Stacia Michelle West
Self-Reported Family Income And Expenditure Patterns For A Cohort Of Tanf-Reliant African American Women: Outcomes From A Longitudinal Study In Miami-Dade County, Florida, Stacia Michelle West
Masters Theses
This mixed-method study was designed to analyze the impact of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 on a cohort of welfare-reliant African American women in Miami-Dade County. A snowball sampling technique was utilized to identify and conduct in-person interviews with women who were receiving welfare benefits from January 1997 to March 2000. The study intended to determine the participant characteristics, employment and wage histories, annualized income, and annualized expenditures over the time span. The results indicate that the average age of recipients was 34.5 years old with four children. The average educational attainment for the cohort …
A Case Study Of Intended And Implemented Tanf Policies In The New York State Bridge Program, Yi-Jung Wu
A Case Study Of Intended And Implemented Tanf Policies In The New York State Bridge Program, Yi-Jung Wu
Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)
In 1996, the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act changed public policy. Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) replaced Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC), affecting both educational policy and social welfare policy. Simultaneously, policy implementation responsibilities devolved to states.
Rethinking Social Work's Role In Public Assistance, Julie Cooper Altman, Gertrude Schaffner Goldberg
Rethinking Social Work's Role In Public Assistance, Julie Cooper Altman, Gertrude Schaffner Goldberg
The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare
This article presents an argument for revisiting social work's relationship to public assistance in the wake of 10 years of welfare reform. Three case studies drawn from a mixed-method study of the quality of life of former TANF recipients illustrate the range, depth and complexity of the needs of persons while they are on the welfare rolls, transitioning off and living without cash relief. The article briefly traces the history of social work's commitment to and provision of social services for this population and argues that it may be time to revisit the profession's role in public assistance. In light …
Long-Term Tanf Participants And Barriers To Employment: A Qualitative Study In Maine, Sandra S. Butler, Janine Corbett, Crystal Bond, Chris Hastedt
Long-Term Tanf Participants And Barriers To Employment: A Qualitative Study In Maine, Sandra S. Butler, Janine Corbett, Crystal Bond, Chris Hastedt
The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare
Although welfare rolls have declined dramatically since the passage of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) in 1996, many of those parents still receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) face multiple barriers to employment. In response to a proposed state bill increasing work requirements and imposing stricter time limits, the authors conducted focus groups and interviews in order to learn about the experiences of long-term recipients of TANF in Maine. Domestic violence, children's disabilities, and health issues for the mother emerged as key obstacles to meeting TANF work requirements for the 28 women participating in the …
Dropped From The Rolls: Mexican Immigrants, Race, And Rights In The Era Of Welfare Reform, Alejandra Marchevsky, Jeanne Theoharis
Dropped From The Rolls: Mexican Immigrants, Race, And Rights In The Era Of Welfare Reform, Alejandra Marchevsky, Jeanne Theoharis
The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare
Welfare reform transferred considerable discretion over eligibility standards and benefits to individual caseworkers, contributing to a highly diffuse, yet system-wide, practice of discrimination against nonwhite and foreign-born families within the new TANF program. Based on a two-year ethnographic study of welfare reform's impact on Mexican immigrants in Los Angeles County, this article documents a pattern of heightened anti-immigrant sentiment and disentitlement within L.A. County's welfare system following the passage of PRWORA. The vast majority of eligible immigrant families in our study lost some or all of their cash and food stamp benefits, and were systematically denied access to the work …
Tracking The Transition From Welfare To Work, Cynthia Needles Fletcher, Mary Winter, An-Ti Shih
Tracking The Transition From Welfare To Work, Cynthia Needles Fletcher, Mary Winter, An-Ti Shih
The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare
One of the primary goals of the 1996 federal welfare reform legislation was to reduce dependency on cash transfers and to promote self-sufficiency through employment in the paid labor force. This paper draws upon a qualitative study of 18 Iowa welfare recipients and tracks changes that occur over a three-year, post-reform period. Thick descriptions highlight the internal family dynamics of the choices made over time. The purposes of the study are twofold:first, to document changes in family composition, employment, housing, and program participation, and second, to report how recipients experience such changes. Findings reveal that the 11 families who left …
Public And Private Sources Of Assistance For Low-Income Households, Chi-Fang Wu, Mary Keegan Eamon
Public And Private Sources Of Assistance For Low-Income Households, Chi-Fang Wu, Mary Keegan Eamon
The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare
This study examined the types and combinations of public and private assistance received by three types of low-income households, including those with children, without children, and elderly without children. Using data from the 1996 and 2001 panels of the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP), the results indicate that a large percentage of low-income households rely on public assistance, and receipt of private assistance is much less common. Approximately 7% of the sample use both types of assistance. The findings highlight differences in combinations of public and private assistance used by different household types. Wealsofound some significant differences in …
Second Generation Parenting: Grandparents Who Receive Tanf, Vanessa Robinson-Dooley, Nancy P. Kropf
Second Generation Parenting: Grandparents Who Receive Tanf, Vanessa Robinson-Dooley, Nancy P. Kropf
SW Publications
A review of the scholarly literature indicates that the number of grandparents who are second generation parents (e.g., raising their grandchildren) has increased dramatically. These grandparents often return to parenting with a variety of financial and physical health issues that need to be addressed within the context of their caregiving role. The current study is a secondary data analysis of a sample of grandparent caregivers that received TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) using data from a larger study conducted on welfare reform. The research is primarily descriptive, providing a summary of these grandparents' functioning. Finding and implications for understanding …
Lone Mothers And Welfare-To-Work Policies In Japan And The United States: Towards An Alternative Perspective, Aya Ezawa, Chisa Fujiwara
Lone Mothers And Welfare-To-Work Policies In Japan And The United States: Towards An Alternative Perspective, Aya Ezawa, Chisa Fujiwara
The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare
This paper compares recent efforts to reduce lone mothers' reliance on cash assistance and support their increased participation in the workforce and economic independence in Japan and the United States. Similar to reforms introduced in the U.S. in 1996, lone mother policies in Japan have been subject to a series of cuts leading to the introduction of time limits and work-related programs in 2002. In this paper, we examine the character of recent welfare reforms in both countries and their implications for lone mothers' welfare and economic independence. Based on Japan's experience and recent lessons from the U.S., we show …
The Financial Feasibility Of Marriage For Women Receiving Tanf: An Analysis Of Six States, Sally Margaret Brocksen
The Financial Feasibility Of Marriage For Women Receiving Tanf: An Analysis Of Six States, Sally Margaret Brocksen
Theses and Dissertations
This project employed a descriptive case study methodology guided by rational choice theory to examine the financial feasibility of marriage for low income women. By modeling the income and expenses of eight different low income family types in six states (Arizona, California, New York, Oklahoma, Virginia, and Wisconsin) this study illustrates the financial situation of various low income families. The family types under investigation include: a single parent family, a family receiving TANF, cohabiting couple with two wage earners, cohabiting couple with one wage earner, a married family with two wage earners, a married couple with one wage earner, a …
The Welfare Myth: Disentangling The Long-Term Effects Of Poverty And Welfare Receipt For Young Single Mothers, Thomas P. Vartanian, Justine M. Mcnamara
The Welfare Myth: Disentangling The Long-Term Effects Of Poverty And Welfare Receipt For Young Single Mothers, Thomas P. Vartanian, Justine M. Mcnamara
The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare
This study investigates the effects of receiving welfare as a young woman on long-term economic and marital outcomes. Specifically, we examine if there are differences between young, single mothers who receive welfare and young, single mothers who are poor but do not receive welfare. Using the 1968-1997 Panel Study of Income Dynamics, our findings suggest those who receive welfare for an extended period as young adults have the same pre-transfer income over a 10 to 20 year period as those who are poor but do not receive welfare as young adults. While we found some differences between the two groups …
Making Tanf Work: Organizational Restructuring, Staff Buy-In, And Performance Monitoring In Local Implementation, Frank Ridzi
Making Tanf Work: Organizational Restructuring, Staff Buy-In, And Performance Monitoring In Local Implementation, Frank Ridzi
The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare
While research suggests that staff resistance to change and intentional subversion have hampered prior welfare reform efforts, this does not appear to be the case for the 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA). This paper draws on data from a study of East County, New York to explicate the mechanisms that have enabled the unprecedented transformation in local implementation practice in this case. Interviews, participant observation, and textual analysis of legislative and program documents identify new program creation, staff buy-in, and the environment created by stern performance measures as instrumental in bringing about the PRWORA's successful implementation …
Participants' Perceptions Of The Childcare Subsidy System, Sue Pearlmutter, Elizabeth E. Bartle
Participants' Perceptions Of The Childcare Subsidy System, Sue Pearlmutter, Elizabeth E. Bartle
The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare
This paper presents a focus group study of perceptions of cash assistance participants in Cuyahoga County, Ohio and the San Fernando Valley in California regarding childcare subsidy use, choices of care, and perceptions of quality. TANF participants discuss experiences in the subsidy system and indicate needs and preferences for childcare. Advocates, policy makers, and parents recognize the need for suitable childcare so that TANF recipients can go to work. However, discussants' comments demonstrate one result of a changing, but not yet changed, social safety net. The authors explore strategies to address participants' concerns-childcare systems that neither function as promised, nor …
The Struggle To Make Ends Meet: Teen Employment And The 1996 Federal Welfare Legislation, Shirley L. Porterfield, Anne E. Winkler
The Struggle To Make Ends Meet: Teen Employment And The 1996 Federal Welfare Legislation, Shirley L. Porterfield, Anne E. Winkler
Center for Social Development Research
This study investigates the possibility that teens in more economically-disadvantaged families may have entered the labor market in response to the 1996 welfare legislation that replaced AFDC with TANF. Data are from the outgoing rotation groups of the Current Population Survey (CPS) from September 1995-May 1996 (pre-TANF) and from September 2000-May 2001 (post-TANF). To identify the policy's effect, we compare changes in the employment of teens in economically-disadvantaged families over the study period with changes in the employment of their more advantaged counterparts (a "difference-in-difference" methodology). We find that teen employment significantly increased among those in economically-disadvantaged families relative to …