Research questions regarding how, for whom, and where a treatment achieves its effect on an outcome have become increasingly valued in substantive research. Such questions can be answered by causal moderated mediation analysis, which assesses the heterogeneity of the mediation mechanism underlying the treatment effect across individual and…

The author describes her 30 years of experience in the design and conduct of a series of large-scale randomized controlled studies in the field of public welfare. She describes how these studies came about, what lessons can be drawn about research methods, what was learned about the effectiveness of these programs (the National Supported Work…

A telephone survey was conducted among rural adolescents (N=414) to determine what demographic and theoretical factors from control, strain (or opportunity), and social learning theories predict occurrence of sexual intercourse and sexual partners. Sample characteristics, frequency distribution (dependent variables), and statistical…

The School Attendance Demonstration Project (SADP) was designed to improve school attendance among teenagers receiving Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) benefits in San Diego County, California. An impact study was conducted from March 10, 1996 to March 10, 1998, to evaluate the effects of providing social services and imposing…

Since 1986, this annual cost study has provided a measure of what it costs the taxpayer each year to support families that began when the mother was a teenager. Three sets of public costs are estimated; these reflect: (1) how much the United States spends as a result of teenage childbearing in a given year; (2) the public cost over a projected…

Boston food costs exceed the combined value of government cash and food assistance benefits that households whose sole income is Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) may receive. This contradicts findings by the General Accounting Office. Food stamps and AFDC benefits indexed to the actual costs of living are needed. (Author/BJV)

This monograph critiques the many nonexperimental impact estimation approaches that have been based on external comparison groups. It proposes an approach to evaluating employment and training (E&T) programs that calls for using the group of individuals who apply to a program but then choose not to participate in that program as an…

Twenty years after the War on Poverty was launched, dependency on public support remains widespread. Part 1 of this report summarizes current research concerning the following issues affecting welfare programs: (1) evaluating the economic effects of welfare; (2) dynamics of dependency; (3) welfare and work; (4) welfare and family structure; (5)…