Examining Administrative Effect on Changes in TANF Caseloads in the United States

Abstract

This study treats the administrative effect factor as a moderator in LISREL analyses to build an explanatory model that best explains Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program caseload changes. The analysis reveals that the administrative effect factor, followed by fiscal expenditure, social needs, and political factors, directly contribute to changes in TANF caseloads in the United States.

Swapping and the social psychology of disadvantaged American populations

“…Complementary to housing insecurity for low‐income residents is the instability of incomes and expenses. Even before the passage of welfare reform in 1996 (formally, the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act, or PRWORA), those on public assistance faced continual threat of being removed from the rolls due to caseworker churning—a sometimes intentional and other times unintended policy whereby administrative reasons were used to periodically cut recipients off assistance in order to suppress the welfare rolls and associated expenses (see, e.g., Broughton, 2010 or Cheng & Wong, 2013). Those in poor communities who work in the formal and informal labor markets also faced variable income flows.…”