Used a three-group design to determine the effects on child development of the Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP), a state welfare reform program. Findings showed that MFIP increased employment rates and decreased poverty. According to mother-reports, children were less likely to exhibit problem behaviors and more likely to perform better…

A Wisconsin law that forces students to attend school before they receive welfare money may impact Blacks and other minority students disproportionately. The "learnfare" program reduces the payments received by families receiving Aid to Families with Dependent Children for truancy and dropping out. (FMW)

Refugee assistance programs are typically designed for men, who are greatly outnumbered by refugee women. A critique of training and job development opportunities shows that women are trained to produce items of little demand, those with children have difficulty attending training, and they are reluctant to engage in paid work if it affects their…

The impact of the Employment Action Pilot Project on employable immigrants on welfare in Edmonton, Alberta (Canada), was studied with 24 immigrant clients, 15 single-parent female immigrants, and over 300 comparisons. Significant differences were not found between program and comparison groups. Impacts other than cost-effectiveness are discussed.…

Presents the viewpoints of seven social service veterans, all in the private sector, who discuss the effects of reducing welfare assistance. They respond to the question of what would happen if the government stopped adding people to the welfare rolls, i.e., no additional participants accepted for Aid to Families with Dependent Children, food…

A homeless shelter in South Bend (IN) operates in the awareness that therapy, education, and all the tools of social work are not enough in working with the homeless. Disconnectedness, fear, and mistrust are combatted through a tough love approach that rehabilitates through personal transformation. (SLD)

Since 1990, all states must implement a Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training Program (JOBS) for welfare recipients. The 1986 aggregated data indicate a job-placement rate of 60 percent. Estimates of unemployment suggest that JOBS participants would face stiff competition for employment, particularly in the South and nonmetro states. (SV)

Examined relationship between welfare status and perceived financial stress and children's emotional and behavioral problems using data from National Survey of Children. Found that levels of depressive symptoms, impulsive behavior, and antisocial behavior were higher among children who experienced either type of economic stress at least once…

Evaluation of the work experience and job training (WEJT) program of Kenosha County (Wisconsin) suggests that it has no effect on length of Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC), a preventive impact on AFDC cases headed by never-married African-American teenagers, and a negative impact on unemployed parent cases. (SLD)

Assesses the major claims and counterclaims in the debate on the desirability of attaching work-related obligations to the receipt of welfare benefits. Attempts to reach a balanced judgment on whether labor policy should continue moving in that direction. (JOW)

Investigated kin networks, kin network support, and consequences of this support for women's work using data from a national survey of young mothers, both Black and White (n=1,787). Results indicated most young mothers had access to nearby kin, and it was these kin who most often provided child care and income support. (Author/ABL)

Examines a work initiative that moved welfare recipients into jobs as nurse assistants at a geriatric facility. The women's stories describe a welfare-to-work program in practice and illustrate how and why earnest efforts to mediate poverty resulted instead in the continued marginalization and stigmatization of poor people. (RJM)

A British Columbia preemployment program for women on welfare focused on engaging them in identifying their needs and determining content. Brainstorming and popular theatre techniques demonstrated the relevance of learning, helped them discover the extent of their experience and knowledge, engaged them in problem solving and reflection, and…

Examined effects on 4- to 6-year-olds of different patterns of mother involvement in child care, self- sufficiency activities, and other services. Found that children of mothers with high involvement in center-based care, education, and job training showed higher cognitive ability than children of mothers with high involvement in only center-based…

Analyzes recent media accounts of teen mothers, identifying interpretive frames associated with the discourses of bureaucratic experts, conservatives, oppositional movements, and the mothers themselves. The dominant discourse is that of the bureaucratic experts who have incentives to tell their own stigma stories about teen mothers. (SLD)