Trends of Criminal Activity and Substance Use in a Sample of Welfare Recipients

The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) of 1996 instituted a compulsory work mandate for welfare recipients. However, recipients who experience difficulties finding employment may increase their involvement in criminal activities and their frequency of substance...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Crime and delinquency Vol. 50; no. 1; pp. 6 - 23
Main Authors: Brown, Victoria L., Montoya, Isaac D., Dayton-Shotts, Cheryl A., Carroll-Curtis, Tiffany L., Riley, Micah A.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: New York SAGE Publications 01.01.2004
SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
Subjects:
Attitudes
Crime
Criminal behaviour
Criminality
Criminals
Criminology
Delinquency
Drug abuse
Employment
Federal Legislation
Houston, Texas
Legislation
Measures (Individuals)
Reforms
Responsibility
Substance Abuse
Substance use
Time use
U.S.A
Unemployed people
Unemployment
USA
Welfare
Welfare benefits
Welfare Policy
Welfare Recipients
Welfare Reform
Welfare Services
Work
Workfare
substance use
TANF
crime
employment
PRWORA
ISSN:0011-1287, 1552-387X
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) of 1996 instituted a compulsory work mandate for welfare recipients. However, recipients who experience difficulties finding employment may increase their involvement in criminal activities and their frequency of substance use as a means to deal with changes precipitated by PRWORA. This study used a four-wave panel design to analyze the criminal behaviors and substance-use frequency of 534 welfare recipients in Houston, Texas. Data were collected from the Attitudes, Behaviors, and Skills Assessment (ABSA) instrument designed specifically for this study. Results show that a minority of welfare recipients were involved in criminal activity. Furthermore, although participants were losing their welfare benefits, both criminal activity and substance use declined over time.
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ISSN:0011-1287
1552-387X
DOI:10.1177/0011128703258866