New Jersey's experiment in welfare reform

The New Jersey welfare reform has successfully reduced welfare dependency as well as births to unmarried mothers in poor communities. This success has been due to a change in expectations in some inner-city communities. Women are no longer certain that AFDC will be there to support them throughout t...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Public interest 1996-10, Vol.125 (125), p.72-80
Main Authors: Goertzel, Ted G, Young, Gary S
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Babies
Birth rate
Changes
Community Relations
Dependents
Educational Change
Experiments
Families & family life
Family (Sociological Unit)
Family allowances
Females
Inner cities
Inner city
Maternal and infant welfare
Medicare
Mothers
New Jersey
Policy Implementation
Population
Population growth
Poverty
Public assistance programs
Public welfare
Reform
Research Design
Single parents
Social aspects
Social conditions & trends
Social Impact Assessment
Social policy
State Government (New Jersey)
Success
United States
Welfare
Welfare Dependency
Welfare Policy
Welfare Recipients
Welfare Reform
Welfare Services
Work Experience
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Summary:The New Jersey welfare reform has successfully reduced welfare dependency as well as births to unmarried mothers in poor communities. This success has been due to a change in expectations in some inner-city communities. Women are no longer certain that AFDC will be there to support them throughout their child-rearing years. This uncertainty effects their childbearing and vocational decision-making. This change cannot be attributed to any single provision of the New Jersey reform. A number of changes took place at the same time and cumulatively made a difference. Welfare researchers have focused too much of their attention on small variations in economic incentives - which can be varied in rigorous experiments - and too little on trends in public opinion and cultural expectations which cannot be manipulated in the same way.
ISSN:0033-3557