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Age As Asset: The Contribution Of Youth And Retirees To Rural Well-Being, Kathleen K. Miller, Brian Dabson Jul 2005

Age As Asset: The Contribution Of Youth And Retirees To Rural Well-Being, Kathleen K. Miller, Brian Dabson

Center for Social Development Research

The purpose of this paper is to consider the proposition that community wellbeing in rural America can be enhanced by regarding youth and retirees as assets. For both age groups, the literature and public attitudes tend to adopt a less than positive view, emphasizing the problems associated with the out-migration of young people on the one hand and the growing numbers of the elderly on the other. This paper points to trends and thinking which suggest that a different, asset-based lens may be helpful in developing community and policy responses. This paper is one of a series focusing on wealthbuilding …


Service-Learning And Civic Outcomes: From Suggestive Research To Program Models, Suzanne Pritzker, Amanda Moore Mcbride Jul 2005

Service-Learning And Civic Outcomes: From Suggestive Research To Program Models, Suzanne Pritzker, Amanda Moore Mcbride

Center for Social Development Research

Service-learning has been identified as an intervention that may address low levels of youth civic engagement. Service-learning is compared to two other interventions that have been associated with civic outcomes: community service and civic education curricula. Studies of these three types of interventions are systematically reviewed and compared, taking into account rigor of designs and methods. Across a range of civic indicators, no clear pattern was found regarding the impact of each intervention. This review highlights the need for increased rigor and sensitivity of measurement in future research on civic development among school-age students.


Saving And Asset Accumulation Among Low-Income Families With Children In Idas, Michal Grinstein-Weiss, Kristen Wagner, Fred M. Ssewamala Jul 2005

Saving And Asset Accumulation Among Low-Income Families With Children In Idas, Michal Grinstein-Weiss, Kristen Wagner, Fred M. Ssewamala

Center for Social Development Research

Research indicates that low-income families with children have many motives to save, however, the costs of raising children, low wage employment, means tested programs, and the need for child care make it difficult for them to save. Using data from the American Dream Demonstration (n=1,801), this study examines saving performances of low-income families with children in a matched savings program – Individual Development Accounts (IDAs). The results indicate that households with children in IDAs can save when they are provided structured opportunities. In addition, this study finds that institutional factors, not merely individual characteristics, are highly associated with IDA saving …


Examples Of Successful Wealth Building In Rural Areas, Jean Schumacher, Ann Ulmer Jul 2005

Examples Of Successful Wealth Building In Rural Areas, Jean Schumacher, Ann Ulmer

Center for Social Development Research

The purpose of this paper is to describe successful examples of wealth building in rural areas through the mechanism of individual development accounts (IDAs). a review of available literature, supplemented by a limited survey of selected programs, provides an overview of the issues associated with operating IDA programs in rural America, a set of ‘action factors’ that help define success, and some initial observations on rural IDA programs. an appendix gives details on each of the selected programs. This paper is one of a series on wealth building in rural America.


Exploration And Use Of Individual Development Accounts By Three American Indian Tribes In Oregon, Christina Finsel, Jennifer Russ Jul 2005

Exploration And Use Of Individual Development Accounts By Three American Indian Tribes In Oregon, Christina Finsel, Jennifer Russ

Center for Social Development Research

Exploration and Use of Individual Development Accounts by Three American Indian Tribes in Oregon


Savings Outcomes Of Older Adults Participating Idas: Findings From The American Dream Demonstration, Michelle Putnam, Nancy Morrow-Howell, Lin Zhang, Michael Sherraden Oct 2004

Savings Outcomes Of Older Adults Participating Idas: Findings From The American Dream Demonstration, Michelle Putnam, Nancy Morrow-Howell, Lin Zhang, Michael Sherraden

Center for Social Development Research

This research report is the second of a three-part series aimed at developing a greater understanding of older adults and their use of Individual Development Accounts (IDAs). The intent of this second report is to answer the following question: What individual and IDA program characteristics are associated with saving outcomes among older adults participating in IDA? These questions are answered using data from the American Dream Demonstration programs (ADD), the first nation-wide evaluation of IDAs as tools for asset building and community development. In this report, comparisons are made between older (50 years or older) and younger (49 years or …


Profile Of Older Adults Participating Idas: Findings From The American Dream Demonstration, Michelle Putnam, Nancy Morrow-Howell, Lin Zhang, Michael Sherraden Sep 2004

Profile Of Older Adults Participating Idas: Findings From The American Dream Demonstration, Michelle Putnam, Nancy Morrow-Howell, Lin Zhang, Michael Sherraden

Center for Social Development Research

This research report is the first of a three-part series aimed at developing a greater understanding of older adults and their use of Individual Development Accounts (IDAs). The intent of this first report is to answer the following three questions: 1) Who are the older adults participating in IDAs? 2) What are they saving for? and 3) What do we know about IDAs and saving for retirement? These questions are answered using data from the American Dream Demonstration (ADD), the first nation-wide evaluation of IDAs as tools for asset building and community development. In this report, comparisons are made between …


An Agenda On Productive Aging: Research, Policy, And Practice, Nancy Morrow-Howell, Michael Sherraden, Amanda Moore Mcbride, Jim Hinterlong, Philip Rozario, Fengyan Tang Sep 2004

An Agenda On Productive Aging: Research, Policy, And Practice, Nancy Morrow-Howell, Michael Sherraden, Amanda Moore Mcbride, Jim Hinterlong, Philip Rozario, Fengyan Tang

Center for Social Development Research

The Center for Social Development (CSD) at Washington University in St. Louis is advancing an agenda on productive aging, focusing on three primary forms of productive engagement: employment, volunteerism/civic engagement, and caregiving. These are activities that produce goods and services, whether paid for or not, and that have effects beyond individuals to families, communities, and society. Older adults who engage in these activities make important economic and social contributions, though these contributions are often undervalued. This agenda on productive aging builds on the results of a CSD-sponsored symposium where leading gerontologists from many academic disciplines discussed older adults as a …


What States Can Do To Remove Penalties For Saving, Center For Social Development, Corporation For Enterprise Development Jul 2004

What States Can Do To Remove Penalties For Saving, Center For Social Development, Corporation For Enterprise Development

Center for Social Development Research

What States Can Do to Remove Penalties for Saving


Overcoming Poverty: Supported Saving As A Household Development Strategy, Margaret S. Sherraden, Trina Williams, Amanda Moore Mcbride, Fred Ssewamala Jul 2004

Overcoming Poverty: Supported Saving As A Household Development Strategy, Margaret S. Sherraden, Trina Williams, Amanda Moore Mcbride, Fred Ssewamala

Center for Social Development Research

Low-income participants experience greater positive financial, psychological, and cognitive outcomes of saving in IDAs than controls. The study contributes to knowledge about poverty alleviation, capacity-building, and empowerment.


Saving For Microenterprise In Individual Development Accounts: Lessons From The American Dream Demonstration, Fred M. Ssewamala, Michael Sherraden Jul 2004

Saving For Microenterprise In Individual Development Accounts: Lessons From The American Dream Demonstration, Fred M. Ssewamala, Michael Sherraden

Center for Social Development Research

Saving for Microenterprise in Individual Development Accounts: Lessons From the American Dream Demonstration


Youth Service And Elder Service In Comparative Perspective, Nancy Morrow-Howell, Fengyan Tang Jul 2004

Youth Service And Elder Service In Comparative Perspective, Nancy Morrow-Howell, Fengyan Tang

Center for Social Development Research

Youth Service and Elder Service in Comparative Perspective


Civic Engagement Among Low-Income And Low-Wealth Families: In Their Words, Amanda Moore Mcbride, Margaret S. Sherraden, Suzanne Pritzer Jul 2004

Civic Engagement Among Low-Income And Low-Wealth Families: In Their Words, Amanda Moore Mcbride, Margaret S. Sherraden, Suzanne Pritzer

Center for Social Development Research

Through in-depth interviews with 84 low-income, low-wealth families, we find civic engagement across a range of behaviors, e.g., volunteering through religious organizations, neighboring, involvement in children’s activities, and contributing. Data are suggestive of a modified life cycle theory of engagement as well as a “stakeholding” theory, highlighting assets as resources and incentives for action. Time constraint is noted as a primary mediator. Possible implications for measurement, future research, and social interventions and policies are discussed.


The Voluntary Cultural Year In Germany: Perceptions Of Volunteers, Institutions, Politicians, And Society, Gesa Birnkraut, Ines E. Hein, Frederick Loock Jul 2004

The Voluntary Cultural Year In Germany: Perceptions Of Volunteers, Institutions, Politicians, And Society, Gesa Birnkraut, Ines E. Hein, Frederick Loock

Center for Social Development Research

The Voluntary Cultural Year in Germany: Perceptions of Volunteers, Institutions, Politicians, and Society


Voluntariado Juvenil Y Servicio Cívico En América Latina Y El Caribe: Una Posible Estrategia De Desarrollo Económico Y Social [Youth Volunteerism And Civic Service In Latin America And The Caribbean: A Potential Strategy For Social And Economic Development], Lissa Johnson, Carlos Benítez, Amanda Moore Mcbride, René Olate Jul 2004

Voluntariado Juvenil Y Servicio Cívico En América Latina Y El Caribe: Una Posible Estrategia De Desarrollo Económico Y Social [Youth Volunteerism And Civic Service In Latin America And The Caribbean: A Potential Strategy For Social And Economic Development], Lissa Johnson, Carlos Benítez, Amanda Moore Mcbride, René Olate

Center for Social Development Research

Voluntariado Juvenil Y Servicio Cívico en América Latina y el Caribe: Una Posible Estrategia de Desarrollo Económico y Social [Youth volunteerism and civic service in Latin America and the Caribbean: A potential strategy for social and economic development]


Youth Service: A Comprehensive Perspective, Amanda Moore Mcbride, Suzanne Pritzker, Dolly Daftary, Fengyan Tang Jul 2004

Youth Service: A Comprehensive Perspective, Amanda Moore Mcbride, Suzanne Pritzker, Dolly Daftary, Fengyan Tang

Center for Social Development Research

When youth are involved in their communities, they typically do so through institutional structures. We construe youth service as a type of long-term, intensive volunteerism or civic service, which takes a range of institutional forms including service-learning, national service, and international service. We define these forms as having common operational features, and summarize what is known about them and their effects on youth and the individuals and communities with whom the youth are engaged. We identify directions for future research,including issues of server inclusion and impacts on the served.


Family Saving And Community Assets: Designing And Implementing Family-Centered, Place-Based Individual Development Account Programs, Stephanie C. Boddie, Michael Sherraden, Lorlene Hoyt, Prema Thirupathy, Trina Shanks, Solana Rice, Margaret Sherraden Jul 2004

Family Saving And Community Assets: Designing And Implementing Family-Centered, Place-Based Individual Development Account Programs, Stephanie C. Boddie, Michael Sherraden, Lorlene Hoyt, Prema Thirupathy, Trina Shanks, Solana Rice, Margaret Sherraden

Center for Social Development Research

Family Saving and Community Assets: Designing and Implementing Family-Centered, Place-Based Individual Development Account Programs


Saving For Post-Secondary Education In Individual Development Accounts, Min Zhan, Mark Schreiner Jul 2004

Saving For Post-Secondary Education In Individual Development Accounts, Min Zhan, Mark Schreiner

Center for Social Development Research

Low-income people have less access to opportunities for post-secondary education, and the welfare reform in 1996 further limited access for welfare recipients. Since welfare reform, there has been an increasing interest in strategiesmeant to enhance the well-being of low-incomepeople through education and the development of human capital. In this study, we examine how low-income people saved for post-secondary education in Individual Development Accounts (IDAs) in a nationwide demonstration. IDAs are structured accounts that provide matches for savings used for home purchase, microenterprise, retirement savings, and post-secondary education. We examine how savings outcomes differed between participants who intended to use their …


Saving Performance In Individual Development Accounts: Does Marital Status Matter?, Michal Grinstein-Weiss, Min Zhan, Michael Sherraden Jul 2004

Saving Performance In Individual Development Accounts: Does Marital Status Matter?, Michal Grinstein-Weiss, Min Zhan, Michael Sherraden

Center for Social Development Research

Research indicates that marriage has a large effect on reducing the risk of poverty and is associated with a higher probability of attaining affluence over the life course when comparedwith nonmarriage. Using data from the American Dream Demonstration (N = 2,364), this studycompares savings performances of married and unmarried low income participants in a matched savings program – Individual Development Accounts (IDAs). The results indicate that both married and unmarried low income participants can save in IDA programs; however, unmarried participants are saving less than married participants. We further examine possible factors that are associated with savings performance for these …


Cost-Effectiveness In Individual Development Accounts, Mark Schreiner, Guat Tin Ng, Michael Sherraden Jul 2004

Cost-Effectiveness In Individual Development Accounts, Mark Schreiner, Guat Tin Ng, Michael Sherraden

Center for Social Development Research

Because resources are limited, the benefits and costs of social-work interventions—like all interventions—must be compared with the benefits and costs of alternatives. Evidence-basedpractice should ask not only “What works?” but also “How well does it work?” and “What does it cost?” Unfortunately, evaluations of social-work practice—like evaluations in any field—rarely can measure all the relevant variables. In particular, benefits are extremely difficult to measure. Costs are simpler to measure, but even so, few evaluations measure costs. In the end, all evaluations are inevitably incomplete and so must make subjective judgments aboutunmeasured factors. The key to evaluation, then, is not certainty …


State Ida Policy Brief: Promoting Asset Building Through The Earned Income Tax Credit, Center For Social Development, Corporation For Enterprise Development Jul 2004

State Ida Policy Brief: Promoting Asset Building Through The Earned Income Tax Credit, Center For Social Development, Corporation For Enterprise Development

Center for Social Development Research

State IDA Policy Brief: Promoting Asset Building Through the Earned Income Tax Credit


College Savings Plans: A Platform For Inclusive Saving Policy?, Margaret M. Clancy, Peter Orszag, Michael Sherraden Jul 2004

College Savings Plans: A Platform For Inclusive Saving Policy?, Margaret M. Clancy, Peter Orszag, Michael Sherraden

Center for Social Development Research

College Savings Plans: A Platform for Inclusive Saving Policy?


Racial Differences In Performance In A Matched Savings Program, Michal Grinstein-Weiss, Michael Sherraden Jul 2004

Racial Differences In Performance In A Matched Savings Program, Michal Grinstein-Weiss, Michael Sherraden

Center for Social Development Research

This study examines the saving performance of low income African Americans and Caucasian participants in an Individual Development Accounts (IDA) program. IDAs are matched saving for home ownership, education, and small business capitalization. Using data from the American Dream Demonstration (N = 2,364), this study compares the savings performance of Black and White participants in IDAs. The results indicate that low-income African Americans on average save successfully in IDAs, though in smaller amounts than Caucasians. Results of separateregressions for Blacks and Whites indicate that mostly individual characteristics are associatedwith saving performance among Caucasians. In contrast, mostly institutional characteristics areassociated with …


Youth Volunteerism And Civic Service In Latin America And The Caribbean: A Potential Strategy For Social And Economic Development, Lissa Johnson, Carlos Benítez, Amanda Moore Mcbride, René Olate Jul 2004

Youth Volunteerism And Civic Service In Latin America And The Caribbean: A Potential Strategy For Social And Economic Development, Lissa Johnson, Carlos Benítez, Amanda Moore Mcbride, René Olate

Center for Social Development Research

Youth Volunteerism and Civic Service in Latin America and the Caribbean: A Potential Strategy for Social and Economic Development


Asset Building: Increasing Capacity For Performance Measurement And Effects+B200, Amanda Moore Mcbride, Stacie Lintvedt Hanson, Sondra Beverly, Mark Schreiner, Michael Sherraden, Lissa Johnson Jul 2004

Asset Building: Increasing Capacity For Performance Measurement And Effects+B200, Amanda Moore Mcbride, Stacie Lintvedt Hanson, Sondra Beverly, Mark Schreiner, Michael Sherraden, Lissa Johnson

Center for Social Development Research

Asset Building: Increasing Capacity for Performance Measurement and Effects


Integrating Savings Into Microenterprise Programs For The Poor: Do Institutions Matter?, Fred M. Ssewamala, Michael Sherraden Jul 2004

Integrating Savings Into Microenterprise Programs For The Poor: Do Institutions Matter?, Fred M. Ssewamala, Michael Sherraden

Center for Social Development Research

Numerous theoretical frameworks have been used to explain factors that influence outcomes of poor families engaged in self-employment. Theories related to human capital, social capital, andfinancial assets have guided most studies. Using data from fourteen institutions promoting self-employment among the poor, and drawing on the institutional theory, this study finds that theories related to individual influences do not adequately explain all the phenomenon.Controlling for a wide range of individual characteristics, there is a statistically significant association between institutional influences and participants’ outcomes. Policy makers shouldconsider a range of institutional characteristics when designing policies and programs aimed atpromoting self-employment among poor …


Evaluation Of The American Dream Demonstration: Final Evaluation Report, Gregory Mills, Rhiannon Patterson, Larry Orr, Donna Demarco Jul 2004

Evaluation Of The American Dream Demonstration: Final Evaluation Report, Gregory Mills, Rhiannon Patterson, Larry Orr, Donna Demarco

Center for Social Development Research

Evaluation of the American Dream Demonstration: Final Evaluation Report


Organizing For Economic Empowerment Of Battered Women: Women's Savings Accounts, Cynthia K. Sanders, Meg Schnabel Jul 2004

Organizing For Economic Empowerment Of Battered Women: Women's Savings Accounts, Cynthia K. Sanders, Meg Schnabel

Center for Social Development Research

When describing reasons for remaining with or returning to an abusive partner, many women mention economic dependence on their abuser. Few battered women, especially those who are poor,have the economic resources necessary to live independently. Additionally, battered women are commonly isolated from financial resources lacking ready access to cash, checking accounts, or charge accounts. Creating strategies that address financial well-being is essential to addressing the issue ofdomestic violence. This article discusses a collaboration among domestic violence service providers in the St. Louis, Missouri region created to promote the economic development of low-income batteredwomen. The collaboration has culminated in formalized economic …


The Knowledge Base On Civic Service: Status And Directions, Amanda Moore Mcbride, Margaret Lombe, Fengyan Tang, Michael Sherraden, Carlos Benitez Jul 2003

The Knowledge Base On Civic Service: Status And Directions, Amanda Moore Mcbride, Margaret Lombe, Fengyan Tang, Michael Sherraden, Carlos Benitez

Center for Social Development Research

The Knowledge Base on Civic Service: Status and Directions


Using Tax Refunds To Promote Asset Building In Low-Income Households: Program And Policy Options, Sondra G. Beverly, Colleen Dailey Jul 2003

Using Tax Refunds To Promote Asset Building In Low-Income Households: Program And Policy Options, Sondra G. Beverly, Colleen Dailey

Center for Social Development Research

Using Tax Refunds to Promote Asset Building in Low-Income Households: Program and Policy Options