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In this randomized controlled trial, evaluators randomly assigned clients to the intervention group or to the comparison group. To be eligible for services, individuals must have left Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) in October 1997 through December 2000 and not returned. Each month from September 2001 through January 2003, evaluators placed 100 randomly selected individuals into each of the intervention and comparison groups through a lottery-like process. The evaluators assigned a total of 3,035 individuals. This study included 2,776 research sample members who had four years of follow-up data and were in single-parent families. The evaluation included a survey, for which researchers selected clients using a two-step process. First, researchers identified an eligible sample of 901 people who met the following criteria: randomly assigned between February and June 2002, at least 18 years old, and Spanish- or English-speaking. Then, they randomly selected a sample of 746 people to contact for the survey, which they call the fielded survey sample.
2001 to 2007
The Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation in ACF at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services funded the study, with support from the U.S. Department of Labor.
People eligible for the study were single parents who had left TANF for any reason in October 1997 through December 2000 in the study counties, regardless of employment status at the time of random assignment, and had not returned to TANF since. All families examined in this report were single-parent families. At the time of random assignment, 98 percent of the 2,776 participants were female, and 81 percent were Black and non-Hispanic. On average, they were between 31 and 32 years old. About half (56 percent) had achieved at least a high school diploma or equivalent at baseline.
South Carolina Department of Social Services (state TANF agency)
The intervention was piloted with about 250 participants from June through August 2001 and fully launched in September 2001, when the evaluation began.
The Moving Up program provided participants with individualized case management services. It provided pre- or post-employment services, depending on the employment status of program participants. Program activities included counseling on career goals and job readiness, job search assistance, short-term education or training, child care and transportation assistance, and mental health and other support services. Moving Up was optional; therefore, to promote engagement, it offered modest incentives, including cash rewards or gift certificates for reaching specific benchmarks (such as finding a job, holding a job, getting a promotion, completing education or training activities, and so forth).
People assigned to the comparison group could participate in other programs that were normally available and offered in the community.
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The random assignment took place in September 2001 through January 2003. Program services were provided from September 2001 through April 2005.
South Carolina Department of Social Services (TANF agency)
The study took place in six rural counties of South Carolina (Chesterfield, Darlington, Dillon, Florence, Marion, and Marlboro).
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