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The long‐term effects of public housing on self‐sufficiency
Author(s) -
Newman Sandra J.,
Harkness Joseph M.
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
journal of policy analysis and management
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.898
H-Index - 84
eISSN - 1520-6688
pISSN - 0276-8739
DOI - 10.1002/pam.1038
Subject(s) - receipt , earnings , poverty , public housing , welfare , panel study of income dynamics , public assistance , economics , demographic economics , public policy , welfare reform , labour economics , panel data , economic growth , finance , accounting , market economy , econometrics
Recent years have witnessed an intensification of the debate about the fundamental purpose of publicassistance to the poor and the effects of these programs on children. This study uses enriched data from thePanel Study of Income Dynamics to examine the effects of living in public housing as a child at some pointbetween 1968 and 1982 on four young adult outcomes: welfare receipt; individual earnings; householdearnings relative to the federal poverty line; and employment. Living in public housing during childhoodincreased employment, raised earnings, and reduced welfare use, but had no effect on household earnings relativeto the poverty line. The beneficial effects could have arisen because public housing improved physical livingconditions, reduced residential mobility, or enabled families to spend more of their income on items thatbenefit children's development. Whether these effects apply to contemporary public housing is unknown.© 2002 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management.