Grounded in person-environment fit theory, this study examined whether low-income mothers' preferences for education moderated the effects of employment- and education-focused welfare programs on children's positive and problem behaviors. The sample included 1,365 families with children between ages 3 and 5 years at study entry. Results 5 years…

New and improved institutions are needed to support the transition to adulthood of vulnerable young people. Existing institutions that should provide that support demonstrate structural lag: they have not adapted to changing circumstances. Action research was conducted in Por un Manana, an employment training program for low-income youth and young…

This study uses data from an experimental employment program and instrumental variables (IV) estimation to examine the effects of maternal job loss on child classroom behavior. Random assignment to the treatment at one of three program sites is an exogenous predictor of employment patterns. Cross-site variation in treatment-control differences is…

With the enactment of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (P.L. 104-193) of 1996, also known as the Welfare-to-Work Act, Aid to Families with Dependent Children was abolished and replaced with Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF). A new system of block grants to states for TANF was created, changing the…

A study analyzed the implementation, impact, and cost-effectiveness of an on-the-job training (OJT) program for recipients of Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) in New Jersey, operated as part of the state's Work Incentive (WIN) Demonstration system. Enrollees in the program, mostly female single heads of household, were placed with…

Over the past 30 years, welfare and other public programs for poor families have focused increasingly on promoting parents' self-sufficiency by requiring and supporting employment. Evidence from a diverse set of random-assignment experiments now reveals some of the conditions under which promoting work among low-income, single parents helps or…

Data from the National Survey of America's Families (NSAF) in 13 states for 1997 and 1999 was used to study how welfare reform policies, mandated by the 1996 passage of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, affected employment of single mothers with children. The states were Alabama, California, Colorado, Florida,…

A Texas study examined the effects of coordination on Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA) program services for Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) recipients, the REFOCUS-to-JTPA referral process, and rural program coordination issues. The impact of coordination on JTPA services to AFDC caretakers was determined by conducting a…

This paper reports results of a baseline analysis of Job Training Partnership Act-welfare coordination efforts in Texas. Following an introduction, section II provides a brief overview of the literature on welfare dynamics and program participation and describes Texas programs to move Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) recipients into…

This booklet, which is designed to clarify facts regarding the minimum wage's impact on marketplace economics, contains a total of 31 questions and answers pertaining to the following topics: relationship between minimum wages and poverty; impacts of changes in the minimum wage on welfare reform; and possible effects of changes in the minimum wage…

The 2-year impacts of 11 welfare-to-work programs across the United States were evaluated to determine the relative effectiveness of different approaches to moving individuals from welfare to work. All 11 programs operated under the Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Program. Four programs were employment focused (three low-enforcement and one…