Showing papers by "Urban Institute published in 2005"

Housing Discrimination in Metropolitan America: Explaining Changes between 1989 and 2000

Abstract: African Americans and Hispanics traditionally have faced many barriers that limit their access to and choice of housing. During summer and fall 2000, local fair housing organizations conducted 4,600 paired tests across 20 major metropolitan areas nationwide. These surveys directly compared real estate or rental offices' treatment of African Americans and Hispanics to that of whites. The 2000 study replicates a 1989 national paired testing study, providing the most complete information available about the persistence of housing market discrimination against African American and Hispanic home seekers. The study finds that disparate treatment discrimination in rental and owner-occupied housing markets persists, but has declined substantially in magnitude over the last decade. Key exceptions to this general decline are discrimination against Hispanics in access to rental housing, racial steering of African Americans, and less assistance to Hispanics in obtaining financing provided.

Ex-offender employment programs and recidivism: A meta-analysis

Abstract: One consequence of the tremendous growth in the number of persons under supervision of the criminal justice system, whether incarcerated, on parole, or on probation, is the effect of this criminal history on finding and keeping a job. Ex-offenders, especially those recently released from prison, face substantial barriers to many types of legal employment; nonetheless, stable employment is one of the best predictors of post-release success. Thus, policy-makers concerned about high recidivism rates face an obvious need to improve the employment prospects of ex-offenders. Over the last 25 years, many programs that were designed to increase employment (and, by so doing, reduce recidivism) among ex-offenders have been implemented and evaluated. [Wilson, D. B., Gallagher, C. A., Coggeshall, M. B. & MacKenzie, D. L. (1999). Corrections Management Quarterly 3(4), 8–18; Wilson, D. B., Gallagher, C. A. & MacKenzie, D. L. (2000). Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency 37(4), 347–368] conducted a quantitative synthesis and meta-analysis of 33 evaluations of educational, vocational, and work programs for persons in correctional facilities. To date, however, the evaluation literature on employment programs for those with a criminal record who are not in custody has not been systematically reviewed. This paper presents the results of a quantitative meta-analysis of eight random assignment studies of such programs, using the Campbell Collaboration methodology. The results indicate that this group of community employment programs for ex-offenders did not reduce recidivism; however, the experimental design research on this question is small and does not include some of the promising community employment programs that have emerged in the last decade.

Explaining Girls’ Advantage in Kindergarten Literacy Learning: Do Classroom Behaviors Make a Difference?

Abstract: This study investigated gender differences in kindergarteners’ literacy skills, specifically, whether differences in children’s classroom behaviors explained females’ early learning advantage. Data included information on 16,883 kindergartners (8,701 boys and 8,182 girls) from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Cohort of 1998–1999 (ECLS‐K). The ECLS‐K directly assessed children’s cognitive skills and collected extensive data on children’s sociodemographic and behavioral backgrounds through structured telephone interviews with parents and written surveys with children’s teachers. Findings suggested that not only did girls enter kindergarten with somewhat stronger literacy skills but they also learned slightly more than boys over the kindergarten year. Taking into account teachers’ reports of girls’ more positive learning approaches (e.g., attentiveness, task persistence) explained almost two‐thirds of the female advantage in literacy learning. Accounting for boys’ more prevalent ...

Examining the Effect of Incarceration and In-Prison Family Contact on Prisoners'Family Relationships:

Abstract: This article explores the effect of incarceration on relationships between prisoners and their family members, examining the extent to which in-prison contact with family may mediate the negative effect of incarceration on family relationships and support after release. Based on responses from 233 Chicago-bound male prisoners interviewed before and after their release from prison, the authors examine the extent to which the quality of relationships prior to prison is related to the frequency and type of family contact during prison, as well as the quality of family relationships and level of family support after release. Findings indicate that level and type of family contact typically mediate the effect of pre-prison relationship quality on both post-prison family relationship quality and support, but that in-prison contact can be a negative influence if intimate partner relationships are already poor.

Declining Employment among Young Black Less-Educated Men: The Role of Incarceration and Child Support

Abstract: In this paper, we explore the continuing decline in employment and labor force participation of nonenrolled Black men between the ages of 16 and 34 who have a high school education or less in the 1980s and 1990s. We focus on two fairly new developments: (1) the dramatic growth in the number of young Black men who have been incarcerated and (2) strengthened enforcement of child support policies. We analyze micro-level data from the Current Population Survey Outgoing Rotation Groups (CPS-ORG), into which state-level data over time on incarceration rates and child support enforcement have been merged. Our results indicate that previous incarceration and child support enforcement can account for half or more of the decline in employment activity among Black men aged 25–34. Previous incarceration also contributes to the decline among those aged 16–24. © 2005 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management

Events that Trigger Poverty Entries and Exits

Abstract: Objective. This article examines how events—such as changes in household composition, employment status, disability status, and economic conditions—affect poverty entries and exits. We also examine whether the role these events play in poverty transitions differs in the pre- and post-welfare-reform periods. Methods. The analysis uses discrete-time multivariate hazard models along with monthly, longitudinal data from the 1988, 1990, and 1996 panels of the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP). Results. Analyses show that many events are related to the likelihood of entering and exiting poverty. Of the trigger events examined, individuals living in households that experience a loss or gain of employment are the most likely to enter and exit poverty. We also find that changes in employment are more important in the 1996 to 1999 time period—after welfare reform—than in the 1988 to 1992 time period—prior to welfare reform. Finally, changes in household composition, disability status, and educational attainment are found to play a role in throwing people into poverty and helping them exit from poverty in both time periods. Conclusions. There is no single path into or out of poverty, suggesting that multiple policies can be considered to help alleviate poverty. The U.S. poverty rate fell from over 15 percent in 1993—one of its highest levels in three decades, to 11.3 percent in 2000—its lowest level in two decades. 1 But even at this low, one in 10 people were in poverty,

Public housing transformation and the hard‐to‐house

Abstract: Public housing transformation has largely failed to address the more complex needs of hard-to-house residents who have relied on public housing as a source of stable, if less than ideal, housing. The hard-to-house such as high-need households, grandparents caring for grandchildren, families with disabled members, very large households, and multiple-barrier families. For these vulnerable families, the same public housing transformation that may offer better housing and new opportunities for other tenants can be just one more blow. This brief lays out a strategy for serving hard-to-house residents who remain in distressed public housing or who are experiencing hardship as a result of HOPE VI-related relocation.

Parenting Influences on Early Sex Initiation Among Adolescents How Neighborhood Matters

Abstract: Building on social ecological research, this study considers whether neighborhood socioeconomic advantage modifies the relationship between parenting practices and sex initiation among young adolescents. Using data on a national sample of 2,559 middle school students, the authors examined two-way interactions between neighborhood socioeconomic status and parental involvement, decision making, and communication about sex. The parental decision-making measure was developed using latent class analysis. Greater parental involvement was related to a lower likelihood of sex initiation only when youth lived in socioeconomically advantaged neighborhoods. Parental decision making centered on the child’s activities within (e.g., television watching) and outside (e.g., hanging with peers) of the home was associated with a lower likelihood of sex initiation for adolescents in disadvantaged neighborhoods but to a greater likelihood of sex initiation for youth in advantaged neighborhoods. Results suggest that the neigh...

Preventive dental care and unmet dental needs among low-income children.

Abstract: Using data drawn from the 2002 National Survey of America's Families, this study explores the ways in which levels of preventive dental care and unmet dental needs vary among subgroups of low-income children. More than half of low-income children without health insurance had no preventive dental care visits. Levels of unmet dental needs among low-income children who had private health insurance coverage but no dental benefits were similar to those among uninsured children. Children of parents whose mental health was rated as poor were twice as likely to have unmet dental needs as other children. (American Journal of Public Health, 95(8): 1360-1366)

Effects of the State Children's Health Insurance Program Expansions on Children With Chronic Health Conditions

Abstract: Using data primarily from the National Health Interview Survey, this study investigates the effects of SCHIP expansions on insurance coverage, health care services use, and access to care for children with chronic health conditions. The expansions resulted in a 9.8 percentage point increase in the proportion of children with chronic conditions reporting public insurance and a 6.4 percentage point decline in the proportion uninsured. Unmet need for health care decreased by 8 percentage points, and estimated reductions in unmet need were greater for children with chronic conditions than for other children. Impact on access to care and service use was limited. (Davidoff, Amy, Genevieve Kenney, and Lisa Dubay. July 2005. Effects of the State Children's Health Insurance Program Expansions on Children with Chronic Health Conditions. Pediatrics 116(1): e34-e42.)

How well does Medicaid work in improving access to care

Abstract: This study assesses how well the Medicaid program is working at improving access to and use of health care for low-income mothers Using data from the National Survey of America's Families, we estimate the effects of Medicaid on access and use relative to private coverage and being uninsured, using instrumental variables to control for selection into insurance status We find that the Medicaid program improved access to care relative to uninsurance, achieving access and use levels comparable to those of the privately insured (Health Services Research 40(1): 39?58)

Domestic Violence and Empowerment in Custody and Visitation Cases

Abstract: This article reports a State Justice Institute funded research project attempting to demonstrate the difference between mediation and evaluation disputes over child custody, and visitation where domestic violence is involved. The researchers attempted to develop samples at two courts—Hennepin County Circuit Court in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Multnomah County Circuit Court in Portland, Oregon.

Changes In Economic Conditions And Health Insurance Coverage, 2000–2004

Abstract: Between 2000 and 2004, the number of uninsured Americans increased by six million, primarily because of a decline in employer-sponsored insurance. All of the increase occurred among adult...

Health Care Market Trends and the Evolution of Hospitalist Use and Roles

Abstract: OBJECTIVE: To describe local health care market dynamics that support increasing use of hospitalists’ services and changes in their roles.

Understanding The Recent Growth In Medicaid Spending, 2000–2003

Abstract: Growth in Medicaid spending averaged 10.2 percent per year between 2000 and 2003, resulting in a one-third increase in program spending. Spending growth was lower from 2002 to 2003 becaus...

Identifying Robust, Parsimonious Neighborhood Indicators

Abstract: Identifying a few indicators that summarily tracked key dimensions of neighborhoods would be invaluable for neighborhood monitoring and measuring impacts of interventions. The goal of this article is to search empirically for such robust, parsimonious indicators. In five cities, the authors analyze the interrelationships among a broad set of census tract indicators related to mortgage market activity; home prices; jobs and firms; demographic, socioeconomic, and housing stock characteristics; crime; and public assistance and health. Through factor analysis, they identify four to six neighborhood dimensions among these indicators that are common across cities. Using regression, the authors identify a parsimonious number of indicators that are inexpensive, annually updated, and available for all U.S. communities yet robustly capture significant variation in these neighborhood dimensions. Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data on mortgage approval rates, loan amounts, and loan applications and Dunn and Brad...

Assessing Access To Care Under Medicaid: Evidence For The Nation And Thirteen States

Abstract: This study examined how the Medicaid program is providing access to beneficiaries, using the level of access available to low-income privately insured people in the local health care market as the benchmark. The analysis, which focused on ambulatory care measures, was done for the nation as a whole and for thirteen individual states. The researchers concluded that, on balance, Medicaid beneficiaries fared no worse than their low-income privately insured peers in most of the states examined. (Coughlin, Teresa A., Long, Sharon K., Shen, Yu-Chu. July/August 2005. Assessing Access to Care Under Medicaid: Evidence for the Nation and Thirteen States. Health Affairs 24(4): 1073-1083.)

How do stressful family environments relate to reported access and use of health care by low-income children?

Abstract: This study examines the effect of stressful family environments on children's access to and use of health care, using a sample of 9,854 low-income children from the 1999 National Survey of America's Families. Indicators of stress included aspects of family structure, economic hardship, family turbulence, and parental ill health; these were combined into a composite family stress indicator. Having health insurance was the strongest predictor of health care access and use, but stressful family environments were significantly and inversely associated with parents' having confidence in the ability of family members to obtain health care, children having health care needs met, and children having any dental care in the previous year. The authors concluded that while enrollment in health insurance may be necessary to access and use health care, it is not sufficient. Stressful family environments also appear to influence the ability of parents to obtain care for their children.

Job Turnover, Wage Rates, and Marital Stability: How Are They Related?

Abstract: This study examines the interplay between job stability, wage rates, and marital instability. We use a Dynamic Selection Control model in which young men make sequential choices about work and family. Our empirical estimates derived from the model account for self-selection, simultaneity and unobserved heterogeneity. The results capture how job stability affects earnings, how both affect marital status, and how marital status affects earnings and job stability. The study reveals robust evidence that job instability lowers wages and the likelihood of getting and remaining married. At the same time, marriage raises wages and job stability. To project the sequential effects linking job stability, marital status, and earnings, we simulate the impacts of shocks that raise preferences for marriage and that increase education. Feedback effects cause the simulated wage gains from marriage to cumulate over time, indicating that long-run marriage wage premiums exceed conventional short-run estimates.

The Health Status of HOPE VI Public Housing Residents

Abstract: The purpose of this study is to provide new data on the relationship between housing quality and health status for people in five HOPE VI public housing developments around the country. HOPE VI is a federal program to replace or redevelop some of the poorest quality public housing in the country. A special survey of residents of these developments was conducted while they lived in HOPE VI housing before its redevelopment. Data for these individuals provides a profile of the quality of housing and the health status of people in HOPE VI housing before its renovation, of residents of publicly assisted housing across the nation, of other people living below the federal poverty level, and of non-poor people. Previously, the lack of data sets that included both housing quality and health status measures has prevented such an analysis. We examined two indicators of health status-perceived overall health status and medically diagnosed asthma. The health status of HOPE VI residents is decidedly worse than that of others in assisted housing and other poor people, despite their similarity in terms of economic deprivation. The difference in the level of asthma prevalence, a condition that has been tied to various measures of housing quality, is especially pronounced. Our analysis indicates that one major benefit of improving housing quality may be improved health status.

Trends in Understanding and Addressing Domestic Violence

Abstract: This article is a response to three questions posed by the editor about past and future research on interpersonal violence by focusing in this essay on domestic violence:(a) What is the most important thing we have learned about this social problem in the last 20 years, (b) what is the most important thing we need to learn about it in the next 10 years, and (c) what is the most promising methodological innovation in the last 20 years for the study or treatment of domestic violence? This assessment suggests that the field has witnessed considerable advances in domestic violence research and policy but that many as yet untapped opportunities exist to improve both knowledge and practice.

Understanding expenditure patterns in retirement

Abstract: Understanding the consumption needs of retirees is critical to assessing the adequacy of retirement income and the possible impact of Social Security reform on the well-being of older Americans. This study uses data from the Health and Retirement Study, including a recent supplemental expenditure survey, to analyze spending patterns and consumption needs for adults ages 65 and older. Results indicate that typical older married adults spend 84 percent of after-tax household income, and nonmarried adults spend 92 percent of after-tax income. Even at older ages individuals devote a larger share of their expenditures and income to housing than any other category of goods and services, including health care. Fully 8 percent of married adults report after-tax incomes that fall short of our estimated basic-needs threshold, consisting of housing, health care, food, and clothing. By comparison, only 3 percent of married adults have incomes below the official poverty level.

The Expanding Reach of the Individual Alternative Minimum Tax

Abstract: The Expanding Reach of the Individual Alternative Minimum Tax focuses on both the original minimum tax and its successor, the individual alternative minimum tax (AMT). The minimum tax and the AMT have applied in the past to a small minority of high-income households. But barring a change in law, this class tax will soon be a mass tax. By 2010, repealing the AMT will cost more than repealing the regular income tax. This report updates an article originally published in the Journal of Economic Perspectives to reflect tax laws passes in 2003 and 2004 and the latest economic projections.

How are Families Who Left Welfare Doing over Time? A Comparison of Two Cohorts of Welfare Leavers

Abstract: A paper presented at the November 2000 conference Welfare Reform Four Years Later: Progress and Prospects, sponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

National estimates of the effects of mandatory Medicaid managed care programs on health care access and use, 1997-1999.

Abstract: This study explores how mandatory Medicaid managed care (MMC) programs affect access to care and use among full-year Medicaid beneficiaries, using data from the 1997 and 1999 National Survey of America?s Families. The authors compare Medicaid enrollees in FFS and MMC counties. To control for unobserved county differences, the authors estimate difference-in-difference models using a comparison group of privately insured individuals. The effects of MMC vary by type of program, with weaker effects for PCCM programs relative to programs that require mandatory HMO enrollment. The strongest finding is that HMO programs lower emergency room use by Medicaid adults. (Garrett, Bowen, and Zuckerman, Stephen. July 2005. National Estimates of the Effects of Mandatory Medicaid Managed Care Programs on Health Care Access and Use, 1997-1999. (Medical Care 43(7):649-657.)

The Road Not Taken? Changes in Welfare Entry During the 1990s*

Abstract: This paper uses data from the 1990 and 1996 Survey of Income and Program Participation to assess whether changes in welfare policy affected welfare entry rates. It also assesses whether changes in entry rates are accompanied by improvements in the circumstances of families that choose not to receive welfare. The authors conclude that policy shifts and changes in attitudes toward work and welfare are the most likely explanations for the drop in welfare entry rates. The bulk of the change came after the implementation of welfare reform. Declining entry rates are not accompanied by substantial improvements in the well-being of low-income single mothers who are not on welfare.

Use of the Formal and Informal Financial Sectors: Does Gender Matter? Empirical Evidence from Rural Bangladesh

Abstract: Access to transfers and credit, whether cash or in-kind, is a major source of poverty alleviation and income generation in many developing countries around the world. Women may especially benefit from transfers and credit in countries such as Bangladesh, where they often have few work alternatives. In this paper, the authors descriptively examine the formal and informal financial sectors of rural Bangladesh, placing special emphasis on differences between men and women. Their analysis uses unique data on the credit and transfer behaviors of 1,800 households in rural Bangladesh. The authors focus on five important questions: a) How important are the formal and informal financial sectors? b) What are the primary sources of gifts and loans within those sectors? c) Do men and women rely on different sources for finances (for example, formal versus informal) or different types of finances (for example, transfers versus loans)? d) How have the financial sectors evolved during the 1990s? e) What is the relationship between the formal and informal sectors?

Welfare Reform and Teenage Girls

Abstract: Objectives. Although the problems of teenage girls figured prominently in the passage of welfare reform legislation in 1996, there has been relatively little research on the effects of the new law on this population. This article attempts to fill this gap. Methods. The article employs a difference-in-difference methodology to assess program impacts, making use of data from the March Current Population Survey for the years 1989–2001. Results. The main findings are that the 1996 legislation increased school attendance among all teenage girls and reduced the rate of teenage childbearing. Conclusion. These are important behavioral changes that should positively affect the program's long-term success.