ABSTRACT The informal economy is often seen as marginalized and thought to aggravate the poverty situations of the agents within the sector. However, in sub–Saharan Africa, the informal economy is a dominant feature which can help reduce poverty, provided the sector is moderated by institutional quality, which is a knowledge gap. The study's novelty lies in the moderating effect of quality of institutions in the informal economy‐poverty debate. The paper uses cross‐country panel data from 41 sub‐Saharan African countries from 2005 to 2019 and the two‐step system generalized method of moments estimation technique. Principally, the results indicate that in both the short and the long run, improvement in the quality of institutions is not only crucial for poverty reduction but is also important in complementing informality to reduce poverty in sub‐Saharan Africa.
ABSTRACT Cash transfers have become an increasingly important social protection tool in development and humanitarian contexts. In developing countries, cash transfers can be used to build economic resilience. This study examines the effects of unconditional cash transfers on asset accumulation among low‐income households in rural Northern Uganda. Using a quasi‐experimental design and cross‐sectional survey data, we estimate differences in household asset accumulation between transfer recipients and non‐recipients. Asset accumulation was measured using self‐reported monetary values of land and buildings, livestock, electronics and communication equipment, transport means, furniture, and power sources. Results show substantial positive effects, with an estimated average treatment effect on total asset value of UGX 8,967,195/USD 2315. The largest increases appear in land and buildings and livestock, while smaller but statistically significant increases occur in electronics and communication equipment, transport means, furniture, and power sources. Effects appear stronger among male‐headed households and those with married or cohabiting household heads. The findings suggest that unconditional cash transfers can support asset accumulation and household economic security. We recommend expanding predictable unconditional cash transfers with additional gender‐sensitive support measures. Our findings contribute to the growing but scanty evidence that unconditional cash transfers can have positive effects beyond meeting the immediate consumption needs.
ABSTRACT Rapid urbanisation and persistent socio‐economic inequality continue to entrench multidimensional poverty within South Africa's urban informal settlements, with women and female‐headed households experiencing disproportionate deprivation. This study analysed primary household survey data collected in 2023 from 322 households across three informal settlements in Tshwane (Pretoria) using an adapted South African Multidimensional Poverty Index (SAMPI) framework to examine gendered patterns of poverty. The findings indicate that 78 per cent of households were multidimensionally poor, with an average intensity of deprivation of 49 per cent, reflecting deep and overlapping deficits in living standards, education, and employment‐related outcomes. Clear spatial disparities were evident across the settlements. Olievenhoutbosch recorded the lowest Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) value of 0.347, while Nellmapius exhibited the highest MPI at 0.409, signalling more severe and concentrated deprivation. Gender‐based analysis further revealed that female‐headed households consistently experienced higher levels of multidimensional poverty compared to male‐headed households, underscoring persistent structural inequalities linked to labour market exclusion, caregiving burdens, and limited access to productive assets. The findings call for integrated urban policies that prioritise gender‐responsive service delivery, targeted livelihood support, and improved access to housing, education, and employment opportunities within informal settlements to reduce multidimensional poverty.
ABSTRACT This study examines how Ghana's decentralized governance system shapes public social welfare service delivery, with a specific focus on the Department of Social Welfare (DSW). In Ghana, decentralization involves the transfer of administrative and fiscal responsibilities for social services from the central government to Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies, within which the DSW operates. Using a qualitative case‐study design, the study purposively sampled 30 national and regional DSW officers (60% male, 40% female). Data were collected through in‐depth interviews and analyzed thematically. The findings reveal three interrelated challenges: role conflicts arising from dual reporting lines, human resource gaps that undermine effective service delivery, and persistent funding and logistical constraints. In response, officers adopted coping strategies such as informal inter‐agency collaboration, role multitasking, and internal financing mechanisms. Participants proposed reforms including clarifying institutional mandates, professionalizing social welfare practice, securing sustainable budgetary allocations, and introducing digital monitoring systems to enhance accountability. Overall, the study underscores the need for structural reforms to strengthen decentralized social welfare service delivery in Ghana.
ABSTRACT Despite evidence for various child poverty reduction strategies, there is ambiguity regarding the most effective types to inform policy. Thus, we conducted an overview of reviews to systematically identify, appraise, and synthesize interventions for reducing childhood poverty in high‐income country settings. We searched five electronic databases from January 2013 to December 2023 for systematic reviews of effects of interventions aimed at reducing childhood poverty or its core determinants in English or French. We assessed the quality of the reviews using AMSTAR 2.0. We included 25 reviews: 15 systematic reviews, three systematic reviews with meta‐analyses, four scoping reviews, two overviews, and one rapid review. The quality of the systematic reviews was low. We found evidence of benefit for interventions addressing children and family support, promoting healthy living, safe and affordable housing, community sustainability programs, and integrated services. Limitations of the primary studies include a high risk of bias and the use of non‐standard outcomes. Despite the positive effects of these interventions, the quality of the reviews for child poverty reduction programs is low. Future research should prioritize developing high‐quality studies that assess long‐term intervention effects. Policymakers should approach intervention implementation cautiously while integrating program evaluations to ensure desirable outcomes.
Poverty, a multifaceted challenge central to SDG 1, is particularly severe in Somalia, exacerbated by conflict, political instability, and climate shocks. This study investigates the spatial distribution and multilevel factors associated with poverty in Somalia. Using the 2022 Somali Integrated Household Budget Survey (SIHBS), a combined approach was employed: descriptive statistics for poverty prevalence; a two-level mixed-effects logistic regression to identify significant individual/household and community-level factors; and spatial analysis (Global Moran's I, Getis-Ord Gi*) to map clustering and identify hotspots. Results reveal profound associations at multiple levels. Household size was a powerful predictor; households of 6-10 members had over three times the odds of being in poverty (AOR = 3.43; 95% CI: 3.15-3.73). Internally Displaced Person (IDP) status was critical; non-IDP households had 74% lower odds of poverty (AOR = 0.26; 95% CI: 0.22-0.29). Community-level factors, particularly region, were dominant; households in Middle Shabelle faced nearly 25 times higher odds of poverty (AOR = 24.69; 95% CI: 13.61-44.79) than those in Awdal, highlighting extreme regional disparities. Significant positive spatial autocorrelation (Moran's I = 0.511, p = 0.003) confirmed that poverty is geographically clustered. Hotspot analysis identified a significant concentration of high poverty in the central regions of Middle Shabelle, Hiraan, and Bay, and a cold spot of lower poverty in the northern regions of Sanaag, Sool, and Togdheer. The findings suggest that individual/household and especially community-level spatial factors are profoundly correlated with poverty in Somalia, revealing deep geographic and structural inequities. Targeted, context-specific interventions focused on regional disparities and vulnerable groups are crucial for effective poverty reduction. (sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)1(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic), (sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic), (sic)(sic),(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic).(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic).(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic), (sic)(sic)2022(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(SIHBS):(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic);(sic)(sic), (sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)/(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic);(sic)(sic), (sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)((sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)I,Getis-Ord Gi*)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic).(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic), (sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic).(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic);6-10(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)((sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)[AOR]=3.43;95%(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)[CI]:3.15-3.73).(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(IDP)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic);(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)74%((sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)[AOR]=0.26;95%(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)[CI]:0.22-0.29).(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic), (sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic), (sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic);(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)25(sic)(AOR=24.69;95% CI:13.61-44.79), (sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic).(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)((sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)[Moran's I]=0.511, p=0.003)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic).(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic), (sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic). La pobreza, un desaf & iacute;o multifac & eacute;tico central para el ODS 1, es particularmente grave en Somalia, exacerbada por el conflicto, la inestabilidad pol & iacute;tica y los choques clim & aacute;ticos. Este estudio investiga la distribuci & oacute;n espacial y los factores multinivel asociados con la pobreza en Somalia. Utilizando la Encuesta Integrada de Presupuestos de los Hogares Somal & iacute;es (SIHBS) de 2022, se emple & oacute; un enfoque combinado: estad & iacute;sticas descriptivas para la prevalencia de la pobreza; una regresi & oacute;n log & iacute;stica de efectos mixtos de dos niveles para identificar factores significativos a nivel individual/de hogar y de comunidad; y an & aacute;lisis espacial (I de Moran global, Getis-Ord Gi*) para mapear la agrupaci & oacute;n e identificar puntos cr & iacute;ticos. Los resultados revelan asociaciones profundas en m & uacute;ltiples niveles. El tama & ntilde;o del hogar fue un predictor poderoso; los hogares de 6 a 10 miembros ten & iacute;an m & aacute;s de tres veces las probabilidades de estar en la pobreza (AOR = 3,43; IC del 95%: 3,15-3,73). El estatus de persona desplazada internamente (PDI) fue cr & iacute;tico; Los hogares no desplazados internos ten & iacute;an un 74 % menos de probabilidades de pobreza (OR ajustado = 0,26; IC del 95 %: 0,22-0,29). Los factores a nivel comunitario, en particular la regi & oacute;n, fueron determinantes; los hogares en Shabelle Medio ten & iacute;an casi 25 veces m & aacute;s probabilidades de pobreza (OR ajustado = 24,69; IC del 95 %: 13,61-44,79) que los de Awdal, lo que pone de manifiesto las extremas disparidades regionales. Una autocorrelaci & oacute;n espacial positiva significativa (I de Moran = 0,511, p = 0,003) confirm & oacute; que la pobreza se concentra geogr & aacute;ficamente. El an & aacute;lisis de puntos cr & iacute;ticos identific & oacute; una concentraci & oacute;n significativa de alta pobreza en las regiones centrales.
ABSTRACT Persistent poverty is best understood not as a collection of separate disadvantages but as a relational process in which setbacks compound across social fields. This article develops the concept of cascading exclusion to capture how disadvantage in one field (e.g., employment, welfare, housing) triggers knock‐on losses in others, generating self‐reinforcing cycles of marginalization. Using qualitative interviews with 216 individuals in late‐1990s Dutch urban neighborhoods, we identify three mechanisms that sustain these cascades: blocked capital conversion, cross‐field chain effects, and symbolic misrecognition. We also examine rare cases of “fragile success,” where downward spirals were temporarily interrupted through the alignment of supportive ties, institutional flexibility, symbolic recognition, and temporal alignment. These findings advance relational poverty theory by showing how structural constraints, social relationships, and agency interact to reproduce or mitigate exclusion.
ABSTRACT Are improvements in objective macroeconomic conditions associated with a reduction in self‐identifying poor households? Since the turn of the 21st century, the Philippines has consistently seen a growth in real output, a reduction in unemployment rate, and relatively targeted inflation. Whereas policymakers associate these economic conditions with a drop in income poverty, not much has been said about the relationship between these factors with subjective (self‐rated) poverty. Fitting time series models on quarterly data from 2005 to 2019 in the Philippines, the paper examines whether overall and sectoral output growth, unemployment, and inflation, explain trends in the incidence of households who self‐rate as poor. The paper finds that the key factors driving changes in the incidence of self‐rated poverty are inflation and changes in unemployment, but not so much overall or sectoral growth. Broadly, the paper builds on the narrow literature on the macro‐level determinants of self‐rated poverty.
ABSTRACT With more than 80% of the population living in rural areas and Ethiopia being primarily an agrarian nation, the development of rural infrastructure is crucial for boosting the country's socioeconomic development. This study investigated how access to rural road transport affects smallholder commercialization in Ethiopia, using double hurdle model. For this study, a data for 1967 rural households were compiled from wave four and wave five of the nationally representative Ethiopian socioeconomic survey, run by the central statistics agency of Ethiopia and the World Bank Living Standards Measurement Study‐Integrated Surveys on Agriculture team. The descriptive statistics result shows that approximately 54.35% of households in rural Ethiopia have access to an all‐weather road, indicating a moderate level of connectivity. The study finds that road access significantly improves market participation and the extent of commercialization, though the effect on sales is small. Therefore, there should be investments in market infrastructure, access to institutional supports, agricultural productivity, irrigation, and climate‐smart agriculture in addition to rural roads to help farmers produce more and supply output to the market. Furthermore, designing region‐specific policies can enhance output market participation of smallholder farmers.
ABSTRACT This article addresses a central problem in contemporary social policy: how targeting technologies shape the definition of the poor and, in doing so, reconfigure the boundaries of social citizenship. It asks how programmatic ideas and targeting technologies interact to define and redefine the target group of conditional cash transfers within processes of poverty governance. The study examines Ecuador's Human Development Bonus (BDH) and its Social Registry between 1998 and 2023 through a historical institutionalist framework, combining documentary analysis, administrative data, targeting error estimation, and microsimulations of poverty reduction using Foster–Greer–Thorbecke indicators. The findings demonstrate a co‐evolution between efficiency‐oriented programmatic ideas and increasingly sophisticated targeting technologies—from self‐targeting to proxy means tests and machine learning models. Social registries operate not as neutral tools but as political instruments that institutionalize specific conceptions of poverty and deservingness. Targeting errors, rather than anomalies, generate iterative technological reforms that dynamically redefine eligibility and stratify benefits. While the BDH reduces poverty incidence, gap, and severity, its effectiveness hinges on the state's capacity to classify households accurately. The article contributes to debates on targeting versus universalism and the politics of algorithmic governance, highlighting how technocratic designs shape distributive legitimacy in middle‐income welfare states.
ABSTRACT This study aims to investigate the sources of income inequality in rural Vietnam by applying both non‐regression and regression‐based decomposition approaches. These methods are used to quantify the relative contributions of various determinants to individual income and overall income inequality. The analysis draws on unique panel data from the Vietnam Access to Resources Household Surveys conducted between 2008 and 2016, which capture the diverse dimensions of Vietnam's economic transition. The main findings of this article are: (i) rural income inequality remains high despite a gradual decline; (ii) income sources from wages/salaries, agricultural activities, and public transfers tend to equalise income distribution, whereas those from household businesses and private transfers exacerbate the income gap; and (iii) from a household characteristic perspective, education and ethnicity are the primary determinants of rural inequality. These findings suggest that policymakers should provide economic incentives for the poor, particularly ethnic minority children, to improve their education and complete training programmes, thereby expanding their opportunities for labour market participation. Public transfer policies could further reinforce educational opportunities and labour market participation for the poor, ultimately stimulating the economy and contributing to a reduction in inequality within rural Vietnamese society.
ABSTRACT Child labor remains a persistent global challenge that affects learning, productivity, and long‐term economic growth, particularly in low‐income and conflict‐affected regions. This study integrates cross‐country data sets, regression analyses, and a comparative case study to examine how community‐driven, hybrid digital learning models can mitigate the educational and economic consequences faced by working children. Results show that child labor is strongly associated with lower school attainment, reduced national productivity, and increased social vulnerability. Countries that leverage community networks and low‐cost digital interventions demonstrate measurable improvements in participation, resilience, and learning outcomes among working children. The study proposes a scalable framework that combines community engagement, digital access, and policy integration to reduce learning losses and enhance long‐term economic stability. By bridging economic, social, and educational perspectives, this paper offers a holistic model that addresses gaps in existing research and supports more equitable learning pathways for working children.
ABSTRACT The global trend of increased migration, driven by aspirations for improved family lives or compelled by natural disasters and conflicts, has emerged as a widespread issue. While gender migration is a global phenomenon, it is particularly pronounced in sub‐Saharan Africa. This research considers the effect of female migration and remittances on poverty reduction in ECOWAS countries from 1990 to 2020, using household per capita consumption expenditure as a proxy for poverty reduction. The estimation technique used in the study is the Prais–Winsten regression model with panel corrected errors and the feasible generalized least squares for robustness check. Data were obtained from the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs and the World Development Indicators. The findings revealed that a 1% increase in female migration increases household poverty by 0.476, while a 1% increase in remittances reduces household poverty by 0.414. This implies that as more females migrate, poverty levels increase in the household. However, the result for remittances indicates that it exerts an adverse effect on poverty, which implies that remittances have a reducing effect on poverty. Lastly, the moderating effect of remittances on female migration, as it reduces poverty, revealed that a 1% increase in the joint effect of the two variables led to a reduction in poverty by 0.009 among ECOWAS countries. These adverse effects of female migration suggest distress migration rather than opportunities, thus leading to loss of female labor and caregiving roles at the household level. Thus, policies should focus on employment‐generating opportunities for women within their economies and the development of skills in order to reduce poverty‐induced migration pressures. Similarly, the poverty‐reducing effect of remittances reveals its importance as a household smoothing mechanism; therefore, policies should be made to facilitate remittance flows, which can be achieved through promoting financial inclusion, encouraging savings, and productive use of remittances. The focus of this study is on the gendered dimension of migration, specifically female migration that occurs in the ECOWAS region, as previous studies are based on total migration, and this is relevant because the patterns of migration differ across regions. The moderating effect of female migration and remittances on poverty alleviation is new, as previous studies have examined both factors individually. Lastly, this study contributes to the broader literature on migration and development, especially within the context of Africa, where migration and remittances are critical factors for household economies.
ABSTRACT This article develops the concept of “manufacturing poverty” to explain how pro‐poor policies in the Global South function less as instruments of emancipation than as strategies of elite legitimation. Using an interpretive qualitative approach and secondary sources from Scopus and Web of Science, the study identifies three interrelated dimensions of poverty fabrication. First, global structures: neoliberal ideology, mediated through international financial institutions, frames poverty reduction within market logics that reinforce dependency. Second, domestic mechanisms: ruling elites selectively appropriate these frameworks, transforming poverty into a political resource through patronage and clientelism. Third, populist programs: welfare initiatives such as cash transfers or social cards, while symbolically pro‐poor, entrench dependency and electoral loyalty rather than structural transformation. The article contributes theoretically by reframing poverty policy as a technology of rule and normatively by urging post‐neoliberal, post‐capitalist alternatives that prioritize redistribution, dignity, and autonomy.
This study examines the relationship between labor income inequality, higher education, and STEM occupations in Ecuador from 2009 to 2013 and from 2014 to 2019, considering techniques, degrees, and postgraduate education. It analyzes the "composition effect" and the "structural effect" using the recentered influence function (RIF). The "composition effect" measures how much inequality increases due to the influx of more workers with higher salaries. Conversely, the "structural effect" measures the extent to which inequality is reduced by increasing the total resources allocated to the wage bill and how these resources are redistributed. The results show no evidence of a structural effect of higher education from 2014 to 2019. The "structural effect" does not occur in STEM fields. The inability to reduce inequality in STEM occupations in Ecuador is linked to the economy's structural limitations and the institutional framework of the Andean country.
Natural disasters have a prominent effect on a household's well-being. Losing income, assets, and livestock puts households at risk of poverty. Most post-disaster poverty assessments rely on monetary indicators, overlooking persistent non-monetary losses. Using longitudinal data from the Survey of the Tsunami Aftermath and Recovery (STAR) following the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, we track multidimensional poverty over multiple waves and examine its determinants. We construct the Multidimesional Poverty Index (MPI) using the Alkire-Foster method and estimate year-specific logit models to identify risk factors. The study shows a positive decline in multidimensional poverty, but recovery is uneven. The deprivations related to illness, schooling, sanitaion, and reliance on unclean cooking fuel remain the most persistent. Households headed by women, lower-educated heads, larger households, those in vulnerable locations, and those with damaged dwellings are consistently more likely to be multidimensionally poor; government assistance is associated with reductions in MPI, often with a short lag. Therefore, the results show that non-monetary poverty can persist even as monetary indicators improve, implying that income-based monitoring understates lingering welfare losses. Policy should therefore pair income support with targeted investments in education continuity, primary health care, and basic services especially in vulnerable areas to accelerate multidimensional recovery.
This article examines whether social capital facilitates or dissuades urban families from taking up safety net programs. Using longitudinal data from the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study, we explore how various components of social capital-operating at relational, organizational, and neighborhood levels-are related to participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). The findings show that the elements of social capital play different roles in public aid receipt. Access to financial assistance from kin and enrollment in childcare centers is associated with lower odds of SNAP and TANF use. A lack of social ties with one's neighbors is associated with higher odds of SNAP receipt in high-poverty areas. Families who know at least some neighbors are more likely to use TANF, but this does not vary by neighborhood poverty. This article demonstrates the importance of investigating the components of social capital to better understand how families attain resources.
It is an evident fact that economic deprivation increases crimes; however, in a developing country like India, deprivation measured in terms of per capita consumption expenditure or income might not be able to provide a comprehensive picture due to the persistence of cash in kind, unavailability of district-level statistics, and the presence of seasonal elements in income and expenditure. Therefore, this study creates a deprivation index based on the inaccessibility of basic amenities in a district, and explores its relationship with property crimes. We find that the relationship between deprivation index and property crime is of an inverted-U: it increases property crimes up to a certain threshold level, after which it decreases property crimes. We use the Control Function Approach to test for the endogeneity of the deprivation index by taking an instrument-cross-district male in-migration rate, and we find the variable to be exogenous. Further, we find that cross-state district in-migration has a direct and positive effect on property crimes, unlike the cross-district male in-migration rate. We suggest that reducing the deprivation by increasing access to basic amenities above a certain threshold can subsequently reduce property crimes. The priority must be given to access to electricity, drinking water, and cooking fuel.
The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA; P.L. 117-2) temporarily expanded the Child Tax Credit (CTC), increasing the number of eligible children and payment amount with advance monthly payments delivered from July to December 2021. Many Social Security program beneficiary households with children were newly CTC eligible for the expanded tax benefit that provided up to $3600 per child per year. Using data from the Current Population Survey and Survey of Income and Program Participation, this study simulates CTC eligibility and effects on income and poverty among SSI child beneficiaries and OASDI or SSI adult beneficiaries with children (hereafter "beneficiaries") following the CTC expansion. The project identifies which program rules are most salient in increasing eligibility. We explore how CTC program effects differ for demographic subgroups, including the potential of the CTC to mitigate poverty in Social Security households with complex living arrangements, especially those headed by grandparents. Finally, we examine effects on Black-white poverty gaps. The findings from this study offer evidence of the interactions between CTC and Social Security Administration (SSA) administered programs.
This article examines whether social capital facilitates or dissuades urban families from taking up safety net programs. Using longitudinal data from the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study, we explore how various components of social capital—operating at relational, organizational, and neighborhood levels—are related to participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). The findings show that the elements of social capital play different roles in public aid receipt. Access to financial assistance from kin and enrollment in childcare centers is associated with lower odds of SNAP and TANF use. A lack of social ties with one's neighbors is associated with higher odds of SNAP receipt in high-poverty areas. Families who know at least some neighbors are more likely to use TANF, but this does not vary by neighborhood poverty. This article demonstrates the importance of investigating the components of social capital to better understand how families attain resources.
