Assesses the effects of employment on family well-being for current and former TANF recipients in Iowa who gained employment. Finds that when parents were employed, they reported aggregate improvements in family income, standard of living, parental self-esteem, parenting skills, and how their...

Details findings from a study of a program that provides retention and advancement services to clients who obtain jobs but continue to receive cash assistance. Notes that a major challenge was low participation rates.

Looks at 16 families who left TANF in spring 1999 and reported $500 or less in family income to see how they make ends meet. Focuses on sources of income and expenses, strategies for making ends meet, and family well-being, noting that most families had earnings from employment, but low pay,...

Drawing on the industry that designs incentives for private-sector corporations, this paper explores incentives as a potential strategy for promoting job retention and advancement among disadvantaged workers. The paper, which provides a step-by-step process for designing incentive programs to...

Presents a conceptual framework for designing, implementing, and testing interventions for low-income unmarried parents interested in strengthening their relationships and possibly forming and sustaining healthy marriages. The interventions would address the needs and circumstances of these...

The implementation of more stringent sanctions as part of welfare reform has been accompanied by interest in how sanctions are used and their outcomes. This report analyzes how TANF sanctions have been implemented in Illinois, New Jersey, and South Carolina, based on six key tasks: informing...

This study identified Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients (that is, welfare recipients) who use mental health services, compared them with Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients, and estimated the number of TANF recipients who might qualify for SSI.

This four-page brief examines differences between rural and urban clients' welfare receipt, employment experiences and obstacles, program participation and service use, and quality of life. It also points out considerations for states interested in enhancing their programs in rural and urban areas.

This resource guide provides examples of program strategies and approaches, including creating a positive context and coordinating services, to help people who face difficult challenges in making the transition into employment.

Dramatic changes in the welfare system have drawn attention to the need to engage a broader group of welfare recipients in activities that build their capacity to work. Some state and local programs currently strive to engage all or most TANF recipients in work-related pursuits, but little is...