A Logistic Regression Analysis to Assist Welfare Recipients Attaining Employment

This study reports on an experiment using logistic regression to uncover the preponderant factors influencing the likelihood of attaining employment by a welfare recipient in Broward County, Florida. Our study considers whether profiling the participants and tailoring the workforce development services based on their respective profiles can increase their likelihood of finding employment (Black et al., 2003). The study finds that our econometric model predicted the probability of employment with reasonably strong reliability. This finding is in alignment with the Welfare Profiling Model of Michigan’s (Barnow et al., 2012; Eberts, 1997;2002) and the Factors Influencing AFDC Duration and Labor Market Outcomes Research Study of Texas (Schexnayder et al., 1991). More specifically, the results indicate that education and prior employment history are significant factors increasing the likelihood of departing from welfare and achieving employment. Furthermore, the study concludes that the number of children, participant’s age, and the ethnicity of the welfare recipient also play a role in breaking away from welfare. The results from the experiment show that using the econometric model to assign services to individuals increases the likelihood of finding employment from 11% to 24% on average. This is a very encouraging finding since it motivates researchers to perform further research in this area of study.

A Food Insecurity Systematic Review: Experience from Malaysia

Living free from hunger is a basic human right. However, some communities still experience household food insecurity. This systematic literature review explored different aspects of household food insecurity in Malaysia including vulnerable groups, prevalence, risk factors, coping strategies, and the consequences of food insecurity. The review followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines. Thirty-three relevant articles were selected from scientific databases such as CINAHL, Pubmed and Google Scholar, scrutiny of reference lists, and personal communication with experts in the field. The prevalence of household food insecurity in Malaysia was unexpectedly reported as high, with affected groups including Orang Asli, low-income household/welfare-recipient households, university students, and the elderly. Demographic risk factors and socioeconomic characteristics included larger household, living in poverty, and low education. Coping strategies were practices to increase the accessibility of food in their households. Consequences of household food insecurity included psychological, dietary (macro- and micronutrient intakes), nutritional status, and health impacts. In conclusion, this review confirmed that household food insecurity in Malaysia continues to exist. Nevertheless, extensive and active investigations are encouraged to obtain a more holistic and comprehensive picture pertaining to household food security in Malaysia.

Impact of Race/Ethnicity, Veteran Status, and Place of Birth on Attitudes Towards Welfare Recipients: An Experimental Approach

The current study explored the differences in the public’s attitudes and emotions towards welfare recipients based on their race/ethnicity, birthplace, and veteran status. Participants read a mock news story created for the current study about a woman labeled as a “welfare queen” who was receiving assistance, but persuaded the reader to be sympathetic to her case. The mock news story varied based on the race/ethnicity, veteran status, and birthplace of the welfare recipient. Participants assessed the welfare recipient on various evaluative measures. A 4 (race/ethnicity: White/Black/Hispanic/Asian) × 2 (veteran status: veteran/not veteran) × 2 (country of origin: born in the US/not born in the US) between-subjects ANOVA was performed on the attitude and personality evaluations of the welfare recipient. The general pattern of results showed that welfare recipients were evaluated more positively when they were veterans, born in the United States, or were White or Asian. Conversely, the public evaluated the welfare recipient more negatively or held more aversive emotions towards them when they were Hispanic, Black, not born in the United States, or not a veteran. This research adds to the psychological literature and nonprofit sector by testing the persistence of stereotypes on the perception of individual welfare recipients.

Who are “The Taxpayers”?

Who are the taxpayers? In political rhetoric, the taxpayer is often the hardworking counterpoint to the undeserving welfare recipient, or the long-suffering victim of government corruption and ineptitude. And yet, despite its potency as a political symbol, we know little about who is understood by the public to be among the taxpaying class. New survey data reveal that there is a large discrepancy between the population of self-described taxpayers and the population of perceived taxpayers; about 93% of US adults describe themselves as taxpayers, but they imagine that only about 69% of their peers pay taxes. In the control condition, Republicans had lower estimates of the taxpaying population, were more concerned that low-income people do not pay enough in taxes, and low-income Republicans were more likely to doubt their own status as taxpayers. After receiving information about the substantial total tax liability of low-income people, Republicans and Democrats’ views of the taxpaying population converged. However, in the condition that focused on low-income Americans as net beneficiaries of the federal tax system, partisans had opposite responses. Low-income Democrats become less likely to describe themselves as taxpayers while low-income Republicans become more likely to assert their status as taxpayers. The results have implications for how and why the parties talk about tax policy, and suggest that the identity of “the taxpayer” has both an economic and a political resonance worthy of greater scholarly scrutiny.

The Influence of Empowerment and Community Participation towards the Improvement of Community Welfare Recipient Community Empowerment Program Based in the City of Pekanbaru Riau Province

The phenomenon used as the object of this research is to improve the welfare of beneficiaries of PMB-RW Program in Pekanbaru City. This research design uses quantitative less qualitative dominant. Quantitative analysis with a sample of 360 respondents using SEM analysis method then SEM analysis results conducted qualitative analysis using descriptive analysis developed by Observer and Triangulation Analysis method from quantitative analysis with 4 informant research determined by purposive sampling. The conclusion of this research is that there is the influence of Empowerment to Improvement of Welfare of Beneficiary Society with the result of measurement coefficient of path reach 0,78, enter "strong" and significant category. The influence of Community Participation on the Improvement of Welfare of Beneficiary Society with the result of measuring the coefficient of lane 0.73, entering the category of "strong" and significant. From the measurement result of multiple regression coefficient, it is known that the contribution of the influence of empowerment (0,594) is bigger than the contribution of Community Participation (0,543) to Improvement of Welfare of PMB-RW Program Relief Society. While the development of the concept obtained is the development of the concept of the Dimensions of Opportunities for Community Empowerment and the development of the concept of Community Participation in Various Development Work. Advice authors to improve the welfare of beneficiaries is done by enhancing, improving and optimizing the performance of the empowerment and participation of active community involvement.

Organizational Professionalism: Social Workers Negotiating Tools of NPM

This article examines how social workers and managers perceive meaningful work and expertise in six care and treatment facilities in Denmark. Based on 29 interviews with social workers (n=22) and managers (n=7), the article shows how New Public Management-inspired tools such as scoring schemas align with social work values such as “client-centeredness” and working with the individual welfare recipient face-to-face. The article finds that fitting social work into organizational schemas changes the work practices of social workers and also the way members of this profession define meaningful work and expertise. In addition, the article also finds that scoring schemas cause conflicts among social workers regarding the character of expertise when values of social work (to meet a welfare recipient’s need) must be aligned with NPM-inspired values of organizations (to meet managers’ demand for documentation).

The comparative analysis of the welfare attitude in accordance with the dual status of taxpayer and welfare recipient by using data linkage

ABSTRACT BackgroundData linkage is a method to form a complete data that can provide more abundant information by combining a plurality of different data files. In this study, we construct the matched data combined with Korea Welfare Panel Survey and National Survey of Tax and Benefit by using statistical matching methodology. We aim to provide the empirical and advisable evidence for tax and welfare policy by analyzing about the welfare attitude in accordance with the welfare status of taxpayer or welfare recipient using matched data. ResultsAccording to the analysis results, people with dual status of taxpayer above the tax break-even point and welfare recipient due to recent enlargement of welfare programs are relatively more positive about the expansion of the universal welfare than taxpayers who never receive welfare benefit. Also, in the group with dual status, the recognition that the current tax burden of middle class is low is relatively higher and the negative thinking about the need to increase tax burden for the enlargement of the universal welfare programs is relatively lower than the group who pay tax but never receive welfare benefit.

Depicted welfare-recipient stereotypes in Norway and Denmark: a photo-elicitation study

Welfare recipients are continuously subjected to media debates and governmental campaigns drawing on images and symbols encouraging improved work ethic and individual responsibility. Only few studies, however, have analysed how welfare recipients as ‘othered’ citizens react to these often stereotypical symbols and images targeting them. In this study we have investigated how welfare recipients in Norway and Denmark, and caseworkers in Denmark, understand and account for images which, through the use of stereotypes, directly or indirectly may question welfare recipients’ work ethic and deservedness. Analysing photo-elicitation interview data, we have uncovered a variety of reactions characterized by ‘problematization’. The interviewees problematize the image and depicted stereotypes, which they link both with motif and symbols and with surrounding public debates on the work ethic and deservedness of welfare recipients. Furthermore, as photo-elicitation is a rarely used tool in welfare research, we address methodological aspects of using photo-elicitation in a study of ‘othered’ welfare recipients.