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A research context for welfare reform

1996; Wiley; Volume: 15; Issue: 4 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1002/(sici)1520-6688(199623)15

1520-6688

Judith M. Gueron,

Social Policy and Reform Studies

Journal of Policy Analysis and ManagementVolume 15, Issue 4 p. 547-561 Welfare ReformFull Access A research context for welfare reform Judith M. Gueron, Corresponding Author Judith M. Gueron Manpower Demonstration Research CorporationManpower Demonstration Research CorporationSearch for more papers by this author Judith M. Gueron, Corresponding Author Judith M. Gueron Manpower Demonstration Research CorporationManpower Demonstration Research CorporationSearch for more papers by this author First published: Autumn (Fall) 1996 https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1520-6688(199623)15:4 3.0.CO;2-HCitations: 11AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onEmailFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Abstract Responsibility for the social safety net continues to "devolve" from the federal to state governments, and many states are now confronting the dilemmas inherent in redesigning welfare—dilemmas that faced Congress, too, as it sought to impose new conditions on receipt of public assistance. This article argues that reforming AFDC is difficult because the public has conflicting goals: putting welfare recipients to work; protecting their children from severe poverty; and controlling costs. For 25 years, reformers have viewed requiring welfare recipients to participate in work-promoting programs as uniquely able to balance these goals. Numerous studies have shown that this approach modestly increased employment and reduced welfare costs. More substantial gains have been achieved by some "mixed-strategy" programs, which stress immediate job entry for some recipients and employment-directed education or training for others. Many people remain on the rolls, however, prompting some policymakers to argue for substituting work-for-benefits or community service work ("workfare") for welfare after a certain period of time, and others for ending all support. The limited knowledge about work-for-benefits programs suggests that, in contrast to work-promoting activities, this approach ultimately costs money. The research record confirms that there are no easy answers in welfare reform, and that states will have to weigh the trade-offs in considering alternative strategies. References Bardach, Eugene (1993), Improving the Productivity of JOBS Programs (New York: Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation). 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Google Scholar Hamilton, Gayle and Thomas Brock (1994), The JOBS Evaluation: Early Lessons from Seven Sites (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and U.S. Department of Education). Google Scholar Herr, Toby and Robert Halpern (1991), Changing What Counts: Re-Thinking the Journey Out of Welfare (Evanston, IL: Center for Urban Affairs and Policy Research, Northwestern University). Google Scholar Long, David, Judith M. Gueron, Robert G. Wood, Rebecca Fisher, and Veronica Fellerath (1996), LEAP: Three-Year Impacts of Ohio's Welfare Initiative to Improve School Attendance Among Teenage Parents (New York: Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation). Google Scholar Maynard, Rebecca, Walter Nicholson, and Anu Rangarajan (1993), Breaking the Cycle of Poverty: The Effectiveness of Mandatory Services for Welfare-Dependent Teenage Parents (Princeton, NJ: Mathematica Policy Research, Inc.). Google Scholar Moore, Kristin A., Brent C. Miller, Dana Glei, and Donna Ruane Morrison (1995), Adolescent Sex, Contraception, and Childbearing: A Review of Recent Research (Washington, DC: Child Trends, Inc.). Google Scholar Demetra Nightingale and Robert Haveman (eds.) (1995), The Work Alternative: Welfare Reform and the Realities of the Job Market (Washington, DC: The Urban Institute). Google Scholar Pavetti, LaDonna (1993), The Dynamics of Welfare and Work: Exploring the Process by Which Women Work Their Way Off Welfare, doctoral dissertation, Harvard University (Ann Arbor, MI: UMI Dissertation Services). Google Scholar Quint, Janet C. and Judith S. Musick (1994), Lives of Promise, Lives of Pain: Young Mothers After New Chance (New York: Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation). Google Scholar Quint, Janet C., Denise F. 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Prepared by Daniel Friedlander and Stephen Freedman, Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation. (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation). Google Scholar U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and U.S. Department of Education (1995b), The JOBS Evaluation: Monthly Participation Rates in Three Sites and Factors Affecting Participation Levels in Welfare-to-Work Programs. Prepared by Gayle Hamilton, Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation. (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation). Google Scholar Zambrowski, Amy and Anne Gordon (1993), Evaluation of the Minority Female Single Parent Demonstration: Fifth-Year Impacts at CET (New York: The Rockefeller Foundation). Google Scholar Citing Literature Volume15, Issue4Autumn (Fall) 1996Pages 547-561 ReferencesRelatedInformation