In the United States, multipartnered fertility (MPF) has become commonplace. This study provides the first nationally representative measures of women's MPF, across multiple years, using the U.S. Census Bureau's Surveys of Income and Program Participation. Because welfare rules contain strong incentives for MPF, and because MPF is especially…

Used data from Baltimore Study to examine how African-American teenage mothers worked their way off welfare. Results revealed extensive labor market activity among young mothers on welfare. Found that education facilitated more rapid job exits and cumulative work experience among less-educated mothers allowed them to eventually work their way off…

Analyzed durability of child-care arrangements, using data from 1983-84 longitudinal survey of welfare mothers conducted in three cities. Findings indicated that family day care arrangements were least durable; however, care in a center was not more durable than care provided by a child's relatives. Only convenience, with respect to location and…

The promotion of marriage and two-parent families as a strategy to reduce welfare dependency continues to be a major public policy goal of the 1996 welfare reform. Based on the assumption that women will marry employed men and that their earnings will lift poor mothers and their children from public dependency, this objective raises important…

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.…

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.…

Guided by the conceptual frameworks of social support appraisal mechanisms and cultural variant perspectives, the reported experiences of 23 Black grandmothers parenting grandchildren who receive cash assistance under the current welfare program, Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), were used to integrate macro- and micro-level…

Investigated household arrangements of adolescent mothers. Data from 1980 U.S. Census showed that arrangements varied by marital status, race/ethnicity, age, number of children, and central city residence. Found differences by race/ethnicity in how other variables related to household arrangements. Household arrangements were related to school…

Uses a causal model to understand the direct and mediated effects of neighborhood disadvantage and family structure on youth expectations. Demonstrates that the employment expectations of adolescents are significantly lower in both nonintact and welfare homes in comparison to youth in other households. Discusses implications for social policy in…

Examined differences in divorced (n=1,916) and never-married (n=878) single mothers' decisions to participate in Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC). Divorced mothers were twice as likely to receive AFDC benefits as never-married mothers. Discusses differences in AFDC decision-making processes and suggests ways to move single mothers…

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…