Contact: Maridith Geuder
A new study by Mississippi State sociologists provides compelling evidence that Mississippians seeking to move beyond federal welfare assistance may be significantly limited by a combination of place and race.
In a report published by the journal Rural Sociology, a team from the university's nationally recognized Social Science Research Center examined the potential long-term impact of federal legislation that overhauled the welfare system.
Through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, the Welfare Reform Act passed by Congress in 1996 gave more autonomy to local communities and imposed time limits and work requirements for persons seeking to qualify for cash assistance. But, eight years later, are the changes working?
For some in the Magnolia State, the answer is "probably," MSU researchers said. For others--especially African-Americans in economically disadvantaged rural communities--the answer is "probably not."
"We discovered that, under the new welfare system, the rural poor are the most likely to need TANF because work alone cannot protect them from economic hardship," said principal investigator Domenico Parisi. "Both place and race matter."
Using Mississippi welfare data and census information, the team developed models of TANF participation rates in 100 communities in non-metro counties. They found that more disadvantaged rural communities tend to have three common factors: higher participation by blacks, less faith-based activities for those in need and a geographical concentration of the poor.
Also participating in the study were SSRC data management coordinator Steven M. Grice, research associate Michael C. Taquino and research professor Duane A. Gill, along with Diane K. McLaughlin, a professor of rural sociology at Pennsylvania State University.
"One of our goals is to help the state understand some of the issues surrounding welfare reform and to provide an objective snapshot of how human, economic and social resources affect those dependent on government assistance," Parisi explained.
"We believe the research we've done in Mississippi can be a test for the nation," added Gill, one of the study's authors.
Responding to a criticism that national reform efforts give the appearance of an urban bias, the researchers demonstrate that TANF participation in Mississippi, in fact, varies significantly between urban and rural areas--and especially in the Mississippi Delta.
"The Delta has a higher proportion of adults with less than a high school education, a higher percentage of African-Americans and a lower share of women in the labor force, among other factors," Parisi said. "The region also has a population with a lower median income, limiting the financial resources available for faith-based activities for helping the poor."
The researchers recommend that any governmental shift of responsibility for assistance should only take place after an assessment is made of a community's resources and ability to meet the challenge.
"Communities with few economic and civic resources will be more likely to be dependent on government assistance and often also tend to be the poorest in terms of social resources," Parisi said. "Without taking into account these factors, we'll continue to perpetuate the cycle of poverty because, under TANF, disadvantaged communities will continue to pay the cost of their own disadvantages."
He concluded: "If you're poor in the wrong place, public assistance becomes long-term. If you're also black, it's double jeopardy."
For more information about the study, telephone Parisi at (662) 325-8065.