"The physical and mental health problems of these adults and children are substantial and significantly hinder a family's attempts to transition from welfare to permanent work and economic security," says co-author Dr. Linda Burton, professor of human development and family studies and sociology at Penn State. "Our data suggest that the health problems of parents and children are integrally linked and solutions developed by state an federal policymakers should comprehensively address both economic and health issues of families."
Burton, Debra Skinner, research scientist, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill; Stephen Matthews of Penn State; and William Lachicotte, UNC-Chapel Hill, presented their findings today (Aug. 17) at the annual American Sociological Association meeting. Their ethnographic study is part of a larger on-going project, "Welfare, Children and Families: A Three-City Study," where researchers at eight universities are monitoring the consequences of welfare reform on the lives of 2,400 families in Boston, Chicago and San Antonio.
Ethnographic research teams observed families' day-to-day activities and the influences impacting their interactions with school, work, family ad government and health care agencies. Of the 254 families, 42 percent were Latino or Hispanic, 40 percent were African American; and 20 percent were White. Forty-nine percent were receiving welfare assistance benefits; of that subgroup, 16 percent were working, following welfare work requirements. The other 51 percent not receiving welf
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Contact: Vicki Fong
vyf1@psu.edu
814-865-9481
Penn State
17-Aug-2002