A study examined barriers to employment faced by 4,014 welfare recipients in Merced County, California. Ethnic groups differed in the importance of various barriers to workforce entry: educational attainment; family composition; and lack of work experience, vocational training, English language fluency, a vehicle, or driver's license. Asians,…

Describes ways in which the collaborative efforts of the Head Start and Job Opportunities and Basic Skills (JOBS) programs help welfare recipients become employed and self-sufficient. (BB)

Analyzed data from National Longitudinal Survey of Youth to determine whether impact of adolescent childbearing on women's subsequent contact with welfare system differed for Black women and White women (n=1,894). Results supported hypothesized patterns of association between early birth, educational attainment, years spent as single parent, years…

Children eligible for Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) were found to have substantially higher mortality rates than non-AFDC children, based on data from 3,679 child death certificates. The disparity appears greater for whites than non-whites. Results suggest social class differentials in health care and risks. (SLD)

Studies characteristics of 29 pregnant homeless women (18 African Americans, 6 whites, and 5 others). In general, respondents are young, unmarried minority group members with no income other than entitlements, who have been without a home one year or less. These women have more health problems than the average population. (SLD)

Presents remarks on welfare reform by Donna Shalala, Secretary of Health and Human Services, at the National Job Opportunity and Basic Skills Training (JOBS) Directors Conference. Four basic principles that guide current work on welfare reform are (1) making work pay; (2) improving child support enforcement; (3) strengthening education and…

Interview results provide details on condom use in youth at highest risk for AIDS. Condom use increased with time and age because of positive beliefs concerning condoms and increased awareness of HIV transmission. High-risk youths proved no more likely than lower risk youths to increase their condom use. (RJM)

This article determines the prevalence of mental health diagnosis and impairment among 632 participants in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and describes the relationship between these problems and welfare tenure and employment. A random sample of female TANF participants was surveyed in two California counties consecutively for 3…

This study investigated how African American women from low-income, single-parent female-headed households conceptualize work and transitions to work, and how these conceptualizations relate to the dominant discourse of work underlying policies and practices in education-for-work. The study used the construct of cultural models as a conceptual…

This paper examines the impact of welfare reforms on several measures of child maltreatment. The authors use state-level data from 1990 to 1998 to examine whether recent welfare reforms have increased or reduced the incidence of reported and substantiated cases of maltreatment, the incidence of specific types of substantiated…

Analyzes the impact of a negative income tax experiment on the school performance of children in grades 4 through 10, indicating an increase in reading achievement for the younger children but not the older. Discusses evidence from previous research, welfare reform and educational achievement, and the research methodology and results. (MF)

Reviews evolution of workfare programs during the past 25 years. Summarizes both positive and negative outcomes of such programs, and identifies some key issues and unanswered questions resulting from these outcomes. Suggests a more viable direction for welfare reform in the areas of child care responsibility, balance of rights and obligations,…

Discusses new state child care provisions to be implemented as part of the Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training Program (JOBS Program) for Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) parents under the welfare reform bill, the Family Support Act. (BB)

This article describes the development of a multifaceted evaluation strategy to assess the effects of guaranteed subsidized child care on the subsequent attainment of welfare independence and aggregate welfare expenditures for Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC). Advantages of a multimethod approach are discussed. (SLD)

Examines data from published sources and ethnographic studies that assess the economic situation of Vietnamese refugees in the United States. Evidence suggests that, rather than a success story, the economic status of many Vietnamese refugees is characterized by unstable, minimum-wage employment, welfare dependency, and participation in the…