This article describes how microsimulation analysis was used to help design a social experiment in two Canadian provinces. The microsimulation was used to choose among alternative program models, to refine the selected model, and to project costs for the Canadian government's program of financial incentives for leaving welfare. (SLD)

Examines three critical weaknesses of the assimilation model of racial and ethnic minorities that dominates the study of racial and ethnic relations in the United States. Asserts that the basic assumptions of this model undergird much of the contemporary policy debate about welfare mothers and about family life among racial and ethnic minorities.…

Children's scores on the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test were influenced by mothers' schooling, grandparents' schooling, and family size. Increases in mothers' working hours negatively affected children's achievement. Welfare dependence reduced test scores, largely due to transmission of an underclass heritage of low achievement. (Author/SK)

Examines the policy implications of welfare reform on the Asian-immigrant community, beginning with a systematic analysis of the relationships between Asian immigrants and the public-welfare system since 1965. The dismantling of welfare that has coincided with immigration reform has left naturalization as the only protection in the current…

L. Ku supports the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) nutrition program as effective in improving children's health. D. Besharov and P. Germanis reiterate their earlier criticisms that the program is less effective than commonly believed and that research evidence about its effectiveness is flawed. (SLD)

Costs and the likely effects of assured child-support benefits on poverty and welfare participation are estimated under two scenarios: with and without incorporating the labor supply changes of custodial parents. Results indicate reductions in poverty rates, poverty gap, welfare caseloads, and expenditures. Changeable hours will increase costs.…

Rigorous evaluations of welfare-to-work programs have had a major impact on the formation of policy in the area of welfare reform, but it is not clear whether the high level of evaluation, especially with regard to randomized experiments, and impact can continue. Evaluators must strive for research methodologies that provide results for policy…

Inteviews with 60 welfare recipients found that they often do not understand the income and support services incentives. The lack of knowledge seems to stem from the complexity of the information. Counselors need to play a role in helping to simplify and disseminate the information to recipients. Discusses implications for states as they develop…

Examines the participation of young people in the Scottish Children's Hearings system, which combines juvenile justice and child welfare. Considers several dimensions of participation in relation to the system and other arenas of decision making. Suggests that participation rights may be more of a reality for young people involved in welfare…

The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 establishes mandatory work requirements. This review article describes the child care provisions of the welfare reform act, addressing some of the issues related to these provisions and highlighting selected state initiatives in this area. (Author)

Objective: The establishment of the Family Violence Option (FVO) in 1997 was met with some controversy, as critics believed waivers from time limit and work requirements would hinder women's ability to leave welfare and find employment. Method: Using administrative and interview data from Maryland, multivariate equations analyze if domestic…

For nineteen years, Mercy Learning Center, a community-based literacy organization, has provided basic literacy instruction to low-income women in Bridgeport, Connecticut. During that time it has grown from three students and two tutors to 450 students, 155 tutors, and five full-time teachers. This growth has been affected by changes in welfare…

Warns that the nation's ability to support its growing number of elderly depends on its success in developing the human capital of non-white children. Presents future demographic trends, discusses limitations in the welfare approach, and offers an alternative approach to developing human capital in low-income children. (Author/ABB)

Explores the nature of surplus population in a managerial society (perceived as a global trend toward ascendency of the technical intelligentsia and intellectuals) in contrast with the underclass under capitalism. Asserts that "the Law of the Progressive Elimination of Undesirable Population" guides the policies of the managerial class.…

A follow-up was made of the welfare payments received by welfare clients who had received job-finding counseling. At the six-month follow-up, welfare payments had been reduced by about one-half for the Job Club clients vs. 15 percent for the control group. (Author)