Question

This task is made up of two parts: INTRODUCTION containing thesis statement and OUTLINE.   1. INTRODUCTION containing thesis statement: Write an introduction that includes background of welfare reform, and its purpose. Formulate your own thesis (the variables to consider are female, poverty, and marriage). Does this reform move towards the way it is designed to by incorporating research (MUST be peer reviewed and published by “JSTOR” 2. OUTLINE: layout the outline per following format as body I (thesis statement)—-about female a b c II: (thesis statement) –about poverty a b c III: thesis statement—about marriage a b c   Attached is a document containing tips on how to write an outline.

Answer

Contents

Introduction. 2

Outline. 2

References. 5

Welfare Reform Impact on Female, Poverty, Marriage

Introduction

A major welfare reform unfolded in the US following the enactment of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA). The law was enacted to ease the increasing caseloads associated with the AFDC program by replacing it with TANF, thus ending their entitlement to welfare benefits. In actuality, the government passed the legislation for one main reason. PRWORA was supposed to lower the over-dependence of the needy parents on the government. This was to be achieved through promoting work, discouraging the birth of children out of wedlock, and ultimately encouraging marriage. TANF provided a platform that encouraged financial independence among the women while at the same time helping women to be both married and employed instead of being dependent on either the government or their husbands and family members.

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Like every great legislation, the PRWORA has its advantages and disadvantages. While the impact of the Act has been felt across all platforms, this paper will focus exclusively on its impact on the female, poverty and marriage. First, the study will discuss the impact that the welfare reform has had on the females. Secondly, it will determine the impact that the same reform has had on poverty, and lastly, its impact on marriage will be examined. Although welfare reformhas had its downfalls such as the situation whereby women lose more than they gain through it and the disincentives of marrying while on welfare, it has effectively served to decrease overdependence on aid from the government by reducing poverty levels.

Outline

I. Women lose more that they gain through the welfare reform.

1. Single female households lose over 4.5% of their net income as compared to the single male households who lose less than 4% of their net income (Brush, 2003).
2. The new Universal Credit system will most probably lead to the loss of financial independence for the women as the credit is paid to only one dependent individual per household, usually the male (Brush, 2003).
3. Only 54% of women at a certain period of time are eligible for the Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) as compared to 66% of men that qualify for the same (Harding, Percival & Beer, 2005).

II: Welfare reform drove America to helping the poor thus decreasing the overall poverty levels significantly.

1. Public policies under the PRWORA protect the children from economic fluctuations, a situation that has steadily reduced poverty among children (Lang, 2007).
2. PROWRA led to a 67% decrease in the families that receive welfare thus leading parents, whether single or married, to look for employment regardless of the kind of job they would find (Haskins & Primer, 2002).
3. The creation of the Earned Income Tax Credit played a big role in providing employment opportunities for unmarried mothers who were then able to move from the poor category to the working class thus reducing the poverty line significantly (Lang, 2007).

III: Marrying while on welfare has its financial disincentives.

1. There is no significant difference between the probability of marriage among women who rely on welfare and those who have never relied on the same before (Graefe&Lichter, 2008).
2. Despite the financial disincentives associated with marriage, TANF only lowers cases of marriage as a short-term effect but not in the long-run as the women tend to marry eventually no matter how long it takes (Bitler et al., 2004).
3. PRWORA led women to having the need for achieving financial independence, a state that tends to discourage marriage (Graefe&Lichter, 2008).
   
   

References

Bitler, M., Gelbach, J., Hoynes, H., &Zavodny, M. (2004). The Impact of Welfare Reform on Marriage and Divorce. Demography,41(2), 213-236

Brush, L. (2003). Impacts of Welfare Reform. Race, Gender & Class,10(3), 173-192.

Graefe, D., &Lichter, D. (2008). Marriage Patterns among Unwed Mothers: Before and after PRWORA. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management,27(3), 479-497.

Harding, A., Vu, Q., Percival, R., & Beer, G. (2005). Welfare-to-Work Reforms: Impact on Sole Parents. Agenda: A Journal of Policy Analysis and Reform,12(3), 195-210.

Haskins, R., & Primus, W. (2002). Welfare Reform and Poverty. In Sawhill I., Weaver R., Haskins R., & Kane A. (Eds.), Welfare Reform and Beyond: The Future of the Safety Net (pp. 59-70). London: Routledge.

Land, K. (2007). Welfare Reform. In Poverty and Discrimination (pp. 243-262). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.