Welfare Dynamics and the 1996 Welfare Reform

The effects of US welfare reform, particularly the Personal Responsibility & Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, on welfare dynamics across generations are investigated. Demographic changes in the Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) caseload, the duration of welfare recipient...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Notre Dame journal of law, ethics & public policy ethics & public policy, 1997-01, Vol.11 (2), p.605-632
Main Authors: Duncan, Greg J, Caspary, Gretchen
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Intergenerational Mobility
United States of America
Welfare Dependency
Welfare Policy
Welfare Recipients
Welfare Reform
Welfare Services
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The effects of US welfare reform, particularly the Personal Responsibility & Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, on welfare dynamics across generations are investigated. Demographic changes in the Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) caseload, the duration of welfare recipients' experiences, differences between & characteristics of short- & long-term recipients, & events that initiate the need for welfare receipt are discussed. Although the perception of intergenerational welfare dependence as unavoidable is exaggerated, individuals raised in welfare-dependent households demonstrate higher rates of welfare dependence. An analyis of welfare recipients' experiences, based on census & AFDC case data, illustrates the heterogeneous nature of the patterns of receipt. Despite the significance of this, it is concluded that current long-term recipients need extensive training to satisfy reform requirements; moreover, future welfare reform should attempt to reduce welfare-dependent families to counter the potential intergenerational effects of welfare receipt. 5 Tables. J. W. Parker
ISSN:0883-3648