[ Main Page of Report | Contents of Report ]
Stably | Significant Group Comparisons | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Stable | At Risk | Dbld | ||||||||||
Housed | At-Risk | Doubled-Up | Homeless | vs. | vs. | vs. | ||||||
Variable | n = 187 (%) |
n = 347 (%) |
n = 231 (%) |
n = 73 (%) |
A | D | H | D | H | H | ||
Demographics Mother (Baseline) |
||||||||||||
Race All Categories | ||||||||||||
White |
16 |
18 |
22 |
12 |
||||||||
Black |
63 |
66 |
62 |
70 |
||||||||
Asian |
2 |
2 |
1 |
3 |
||||||||
American Indian |
7 |
6 |
7 |
4 |
||||||||
Hispanic |
-- |
0.3 |
-- |
-- |
||||||||
Other |
13 |
9 | 9 |
11 |
|
|||||||
Race |
62 |
65 |
61 |
70 |
||||||||
Age |
24.7 |
24.2 |
24.1 |
24.0 |
||||||||
Mothers Income (%) | ||||||||||||
< $5,000 |
46 |
51 |
55 |
49 |
||||||||
$5,000 $10,000 |
36 |
34 |
26 |
37 |
||||||||
> $10,000 |
17 |
15 |
20 |
14 |
||||||||
Demographics Father (Baseline) |
||||||||||||
Race All Categories | ||||||||||||
White |
14 |
16 |
21 |
10 |
ü | |||||||
Black |
63 |
69 |
62 |
79 |
|
ü | ||||||
Asian |
2 |
1 |
0.4 |
1 |
||||||||
American Indian |
7 |
5 |
7 |
1 |
||||||||
Hispanic |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
||||||||
Other |
15 |
9 | 11 |
9 |
|
|
||||||
Race |
54 |
59 |
58 |
60 |
||||||||
Age (mean, standard deviation) |
16.5 |
18.4 |
16.8 (16.2) |
19.2 |
||||||||
Fathers Income (%) | ||||||||||||
< $5,000 |
18 |
17 |
15 |
8 |
||||||||
$5,000 $10,000 |
9 |
15 |
19 |
17 |
||||||||
> $10,000 |
73 |
69 |
66 |
75 |
Stably | Significant Group Comparisons | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Stable | At Risk | Dbld | ||||||||||
Housed | At-Risk | Doubled-Up | Homeless | vs. | vs. | vs. | ||||||
Variable | n = 187 (%) |
n = 347 (%) |
n = 231 (%) |
n = 73 (%) |
A | D | H | D | H | H | ||
Background Mother | ||||||||||||
Living with both biological parents at age 15 |
39 |
30 |
35 |
29 |
ü |
|||||||
Had first birth as a teen |
30 |
30 |
27 |
36 |
||||||||
Mothers Age at 1st Birth |
19.8 |
19.4 |
20.0 |
19.1 |
||||||||
Any new pregnancies or children? |
||||||||||||
Year 1 |
27 |
16 |
11 |
16 |
||||||||
Year 3 |
41 |
35 |
36 |
45 |
||||||||
Mothers Education Baseline |
||||||||||||
< HS |
54 |
51 |
55 |
55 |
||||||||
HS + |
47 |
49 |
45 |
45 |
||||||||
Currently attend any school/training 1 year |
17 |
20 |
14 |
18 |
||||||||
Mother has worked since childs birth 1 year |
65 |
73 |
75 |
73 |
||||||||
Do any regular work for pay last week? |
||||||||||||
Year 1 |
35 |
38 |
37 |
34 |
||||||||
Year 3 |
51 |
47 |
44 |
32 |
ü |
ü |
||||||
Visited a doctor/health care professional |
93 |
94 |
98 |
92 |
|
ü |
ü |
Stably | Significant Group Comparisons | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Stable | At Risk | Dbld | ||||||||||
Housed | At-Risk | Doubled-Up | Homeless | vs. | vs. | vs. | ||||||
Variable | n = 187 (%) |
n = 347 (%) |
n = 231 (%) |
n = 73 (%) |
A | D | H | D | H | H | ||
Mothers Household Composition | ||||||||||||
Lives with Partner/Spouse |
||||||||||||
Baseline |
42 |
44 |
38 |
40 |
||||||||
Year 1 |
57 |
48 |
35 |
40 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|||||
Year 3 |
45 |
45 |
36 |
30 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|||||
Lives with Mother (i.e. childs grandmother) |
||||||||||||
Baseline |
27 |
18 |
27 |
23 |
ü |
|
|
ü |
|
|
||
Year 1 |
16 |
10 |
22 |
14 |
|
|
|
ü |
|
|
||
Year 3 |
9 |
6 |
8 |
18 |
|
ü |
|
ü |
|
ü |
||
Child lives with mother | ||||||||||||
Baseline |
98 |
99 |
100 |
94 |
|
ü |
|
|
ü |
ü |
||
Year 1 |
97 |
99 |
94 |
93 |
|
|
|
ü |
ü |
|
||
Year 3 |
97 |
98 |
95 |
89 |
|
|
ü |
|
ü |
|
||
Number of adults in Household (not partner) |
||||||||||||
Baseline |
.80 |
.52 |
.87 |
.59 |
ü |
|
|
ü |
|
ü |
||
Year 1 |
.67 |
.39 |
.97 |
.62 |
ü |
ü |
|
ü |
|
ü |
||
Year 3 |
.69 |
.58 |
1.04 |
.87 |
|
ü |
|
ü |
ü |
|
||
Number of children in household |
||||||||||||
Baseline |
1.89 |
1.57 |
1.56 |
1.44 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
|
|
||
Year 1 |
2.83 |
2.68 |
2.86 |
2.56 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
||
Year 3 |
2.94 |
2.79 |
2.76 |
2.77 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
||
Spouse/Partner Working | ||||||||||||
Baseline |
34 |
37 |
31 |
30 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
||
Year 1 |
41 |
31 |
20 |
18 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
||
Year 3 |
16 |
13 |
7 |
5 |
|
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
|
Stably | Significant Group Comparisons | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Stable | At Risk | Dbld | |||||||||
Housed | At-Risk | Doubled-Up | Homeless | vs. | vs. | vs. | |||||
Variable | n = 187 (%) |
n = 347 (%) |
n = 231 (%) |
n = 73 (%) |
A | D | H | D | H | H | |
Other adult in household working |
|||||||||||
Baseline |
31 |
20 |
39 |
25 |
ü |
|
ü |
ü |
|||
Year 1 |
22 |
13 |
31 |
19 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|||
Year 3 |
33 |
28 |
44 |
38 |
|
ü |
ü |
|
|||
Housing | |||||||||||
Mother lives in housing project |
|||||||||||
Baseline |
23 |
24 |
18 |
23 |
|
|
|
|
|||
Year 1 |
33 |
31 |
18 |
19 |
|
ü | ü |
ü | ü |
|
|
Year 3 |
28 |
26 |
21 |
27 |
|
|
|
|
|||
Mother receives housing subsidy |
|||||||||||
Baseline |
28 |
35 |
20 |
38 |
|
|
ü | ü | |||
Year 1 |
31 |
34 |
19 |
14 |
|
ü |
ü | ü | ü | ||
Year 3 |
32 |
34 | 22 |
29 |
|
ü |
|
ü | |||
Safety of streets around home at night Baseline |
|||||||||||
Very Safe |
19 |
13 |
18 |
16 |
|
|
|||||
Safe |
61 |
60 |
56 |
47 |
|
ü |
|||||
Unsafe |
16 |
21 |
21 |
27 |
|
ü |
|||||
Very Unsafe |
4 |
6 | 5 |
10 |
|
|
|||||
Problems Making Ends Meet | |||||||||||
Received free food/meal in past 12 months |
|||||||||||
Year 1 |
3 |
15 |
20 |
34 | ü |
ü |
ü |
|
ü |
ü |
|
Year 3 |
2 |
15 |
16 |
35 | ü |
ü |
ü |
|
ü |
ü |
|
In past 12 months, children went hungry Year 1 |
0 |
2 |
2 |
5 |
|
|
ü |
|
|
|
|
In past 12 months, mother went hungry Year 1 |
2 |
7 |
12 |
22 | ü |
ü |
ü |
|
ü |
ü |
|
Social Support | |||||||||||
During pregnancy, received financial support |
53 |
57 | 67 |
67 |
|
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
|
|
Next year, would someone in family loan you $200? | |||||||||||
Baseline |
85 |
81 |
80 |
79 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Year 1 |
74 |
74 |
67 |
64 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Year 3 |
82 |
72 |
75 |
74 | ü |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Next year, would someone in family give you a place to live? |
|||||||||||
Baseline |
90 |
86 |
88 |
85 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Year 1 |
82 |
72 |
80 |
64 | ü |
|
ü |
ü |
|
|
|
Year 3 |
82 |
74 |
79 |
62 |
|
|
ü |
|
ü |
ü |
|
Next year, would someone help you with babysitting/ child care? |
|||||||||||
Baseline |
92 |
37 |
88 |
89 |
|
|
|
|
|
||
Year 1 |
82 |
79 |
81 |
81 |
|
|
|
|
|
||
Year 3 |
90 |
77 |
84 |
75 |
ü |
|
ü |
ü |
|
|
|
Count on someone to co-sign loan for $1000 | |||||||||||
Year 1 |
50 |
37 |
42 |
33 |
ü |
|
ü |
|
|
|
|
Year 3 |
54 |
40 |
37 |
26 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
ü |
|
|
Government Assistance | |||||||||||
In last year, had income from public assistance, |
60 |
69 | 58 |
74 |
ü |
|
ü | ü |
|
ü | |
In last year, had income from unemployment insurance, |
8 |
8 | 17 |
12 |
|
|
|
|
|||
Received food stamps in past 12 months |
|||||||||||
Year 1 |
68 |
75 |
68 |
82 |
|
|
ü |
|
|
ü |
|
Year 3 |
60 |
71 |
74 |
76 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
|
|
|
Complete tax form Year 1 |
44 |
47 |
44 |
36 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Applied for Earned Income Tax Credit? Year 1 |
43 |
72 |
65 |
74 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
|
|
|
Have any health insurance |
|||||||||||
Year 1 |
88 |
90 |
84 |
85 |
|
|
|
ü |
|
|
|
Year 3 |
90 |
93 |
93 |
97 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Health, Mental Health, and Substance Abuse | |||||||||||
Mothers health (avg.) | |||||||||||
Baseline |
2.07 |
2.28 |
2.32 |
2.48 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
|
|
|
Year 1 |
1.95 |
2.39 |
2.42 |
2.55 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
|
|
|
Year 3 |
2.05 |
2.45 |
2.45 |
2.65 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
|
|
|
Use Alcohol | |||||||||||
Baseline |
9 |
12 |
13 |
25 |
|
|
ü |
|
ü |
ü |
|
Year 1 |
17 |
28 |
28 |
29 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
|
|
|
Year 3 |
30 |
47 |
49 |
49 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
|
|
|
Use Drugs | |||||||||||
Baseline |
7 |
5 |
13 |
25 |
|
ü |
ü |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
Year 1 |
1 |
3 |
5 |
5 |
|
ü |
ü |
|
|
|
|
Year 3 |
1 |
9 |
9 |
20 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
ü |
ü |
|
Use Cigarettes | |||||||||||
Baseline |
20 |
29 |
30 |
40 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
|
|
|
Year 1 |
25 |
36 |
39 |
47 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
|
|
|
In past year, has alcohol or drugs interfered with work/relationships? |
|||||||||||
Baseline |
1 |
4 |
6 |
4 |
ü |
ü |
|
|
|
|
|
Year 1 |
2 |
1 |
6 |
5 |
|
ü |
|
ü |
ü |
|
|
Year 3 |
3 |
6 |
7 |
16 |
ü |
|
ü |
|
|
ü |
|
Felt sad/depressed 2 or more weeks in a row |
|||||||||||
Year 1 |
12 |
24 |
24 |
46 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
ü |
ü |
|
Year 3 |
15 |
31 |
38 |
39 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
|
|
Stably | Significant Group Comparisons | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Stable | At Risk | Dbld | ||||||||||
Housed | At-Risk | Doubled-Up | Homeless | vs. | vs. | vs. | ||||||
Variable | n = 187 (%) |
n = 347 (%) |
n = 231 (%) |
n = 73 (%) |
A | D | H | D | H | H | ||
Lost interest in hobbies/work for 2 or more weeks in a row |
||||||||||||
Year 1 |
3 |
16 |
19 |
20 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
|
|
||
Year 3 |
6 |
14 |
15 |
24 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
|
|
||
Felt tense/anxious for month or longer |
||||||||||||
Year 1 |
7 |
20 |
20 |
36 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
ü |
ü |
||
Year 3 |
5 |
22 |
24 |
39 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
ü |
ü |
||
Sought help or was treated for drug or alcohol problems |
||||||||||||
Year 1 |
4 |
4 |
6 |
12 |
|
|
ü |
|
ü |
|
||
Year 3 |
1 |
1 |
6 |
6 |
|
ü |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
||
Hit or slapped by spouse/partner |
||||||||||||
Baseline |
2 |
4 |
7 |
8 |
|
ü |
ü |
|
|
|
||
Year 1 |
4 |
10 |
12 |
19 |
ü |
ü |
ü |
|
ü |
|||
Year 3 |
8 |
13 |
16 |
25 |
|
ü |
ü |
|
ü |
|
Year 1 Model | Yr 1 or 3 Model | Year 3 Model | |
---|---|---|---|
n=778 |
n=775 |
n=688 |
|
Nagelkerke R2 | .157 | .166 | .333 |
Age | |||
Race (% Black) | |||
Live Both Parents @ 15 | |||
Teen Birth |
|
|
.872* |
Preg @ Year 1 | |||
Preg @ Year 3 | # | # | |
Partner Baseline |
|
|
# |
Partner Yr 1 | # | # | |
Change Partner B-1 |
|
|
# |
Change Partner 1-3 | # | # | -1.536*** |
Live with Mother Base |
|
|
# |
Live with Mother Yr 1 | # | # | 1.007* |
Change Live Mom B-1 |
|
|
# |
Change Live Mom 1-3 | # | # |
|
# Adults in Hhld Base |
|
|
# |
# Adults in Hhld Yr 1 |
|
|
|
# Adults in Hhld Yr 3 | # | # | .509** |
# Kids Baseline |
|
|
# |
# Kids Yr 1 |
|
|
|
# Kids Yr 3 | # | # |
|
Social Support Base (# Sources 0-3) |
|
|
# |
Social Support Yr 1 |
|
|
|
Social Support Yr 3 | # | # |
|
$1000 Loan Yr 1 |
|
|
|
$1000 Loan Yr 3 | # | # | -1.303* |
Educ Level Baseline (<HS/HS+) |
|
|
|
Mother Working Base |
|
|
# |
Mother Working Yr 1 | # | # | -1.537* |
Change Mom Work B-1 |
|
|
# |
Change Mom Work 1-3 | # | # | -1.803** |
Income Year 1 (ln) | -.155* |
-.182** |
-.303*** |
Partner Working Base |
|
|
# |
Partner Working Yr 1 | # | # |
|
Change Partner Work B-1 |
|
|
# |
Change Partner Work 1-3 | # | # |
|
Other Adult Work Base |
|
|
# |
Other Adult Work Yr 1 |
|
|
|
Other Adult Work Yr 3 | # | # |
|
# Indicates cell that is gray. |
Year 1 Model |
Yr 1 or 3 Model |
Year 3 Model |
|
---|---|---|---|
n=778 |
n=775 |
n=688 |
|
Nagelkerke R2 |
.157 |
.166 |
.333 |
Health Status Base (1:Excellent 5:Poor) |
|
|
# |
Health Status Yr 1 |
|
|
|
Health Status Yr 3 | # | # |
|
Ever Use SA Base and Yr 1 | 1.076* |
|
|
SA Ever Interfere B and |
|
.781* |
# |
Ever DV B and Yr 1 | 1.092** |
.764* |
# |
MH Prob Yr 1 | .306 |
.473*** |
# |
Ever Use SA Base, 1, 3 | # | # |
|
SA Ever Interfere B, 1, 3 | # | # |
|
Ever DV B, 1, 3 | # | # |
|
MH Prob Yr 3 | # | # | .637** |
Neigh Safety Baseline |
|
|
.535* |
Public Hsng Base |
|
|
# |
Public Hsng Yr 1 | # | # |
|
Change Pub Hsng B-1 |
|
|
# |
Change Pub Hsng 1-3 | # | # |
|
Hsng Assist Baseline |
|
-.815* |
# |
Hsng Assist Yr 1 | # | # | -1.473* |
Change Hsng Assist B-1 | -1.029*** |
-1.359*** |
# |
Change Hsng Assit 1-3 | # | # |
|
TANF/Food Stamps Base |
|
|
# |
Receive TANF Yr 1 | .995** |
1.029*** |
.759 |
Change TANF 1-3 | # | # |
|
Receive Food Stamps Yr 1 |
|
|
|
Change Food Stamps 1-3 | # | # |
|
*Significant at P<.05 **Significant at P<.01 ***Significant at P<.001 # Indicates cell that is gray. |
Year 1 Model | Yr 1 or 3 Model | Year 3 Model | |
---|---|---|---|
n=778 |
n=775 |
n=688 |
|
Nagelkerke R2 |
.221 |
.197 |
.183 |
Age | .033 |
||
Race (% Black) | |||
Live Both Parents @ 15 | |||
Teen Birth | |||
Preg @ Year 1 | |||
Preg @ Year 3 | # | # | |
Partner Baseline | .530** |
.548* |
# |
Partner Yr 1 | # | # |
|
Change Partner B-1 | .456* |
|
# |
Change Partner 1-3 | # | # | -.303 |
Live with Mother Baseline |
|
|
# |
Live with Mother Yr 1 | # | # |
|
Change Live Mom B-1 | .336 |
|
# |
Change Live Mom 1-3 | # | # | -.479** |
# Adults in Hhld Baseline | .186* |
.210* |
# |
# Adults in Hhld Yr 1 |
|
|
|
# Adults in Hhld Yr 3 | # | # |
|
# Kids Baseline | .194*** |
|
# |
# Kids Yr 1 |
|
|
|
# Kids Yr 3 | # | # |
|
Social Support Base |
|
|
# |
Social Support Yr 1 |
|
|
|
Social Support Yr 3 | # | # |
|
$1000 Loan Yr 1 | .291 |
|
|
$1000 Loan Yr 3 | # | # |
|
Educ Level Baseline (<HS/HS+) |
|
|
|
Mother Working Baseline | -.283 |
|
# |
Mother Working Yr 1 | # | # |
|
Change Mom Work B-1 |
|
|
# |
Change Mom Work 1-3 | # | # | .383** |
Income Yr 1 (ln) | .091 |
.112 |
|
Partner Working Base |
|
|
# |
Partner Working Yr 1 | # | # |
|
Change Partner Work B-1 | .705** |
.881*** |
# |
Change Partner Work 1-3 | # | # |
|
Other Adult Working Base |
|
|
# |
Other Adult Working Yr 1 |
|
|
|
Other Adult Working Yr 3 | # | # |
|
# Indicates cell that is gray. |
Year 1 Model |
Yr 1 or 3 Model |
Year 3 Model |
|
---|---|---|---|
n=778 |
n=775 |
n=688 |
|
Nagelkerke R2 |
.221 |
.197 |
.183 |
Health Status Base (1:Excellent 5:Poor) |
-.149 |
-.323*** |
# |
Health Status Yr 1 |
|
|
-.130 |
Health Status Yr 3 | # | # |
|
Ever Use SA Base and Yr1 | -.473** |
-.644** |
# |
SA Ever Interfere B and Yr 1 |
|
|
# |
Ever DV B and Yr 1 | -1.037*** |
-.928* |
# |
MH Prob Yr 1 | -.546*** |
-.625*** |
# |
Ever Use SA Base, 1, 3 | # | # | -.692*** |
SA Ever Interfere B, 1, 3 | # | # |
|
Ever DV B, 1, 3 | # | # |
|
MH Prob Yr 3 | # | # | -.583*** |
Neigh Safety Baseline (1 Very Safe 4 Very Unsafe) |
|
|
|
Public Hsng Base |
|
.823** |
# |
Public Hsng Yr 1 | # | # | .528** |
Change Pub Hsng B-1 |
|
.548* |
# |
Change Pub Hsng 1-3 | # | # |
|
Hsng Assist Baseline |
|
|
# |
Hsng Assist Yr 1 | # | # |
|
Change Hsng Assist B-1 |
|
.352 |
# |
Change Hsng Assit 1-3 | # | # |
|
TANF/Food Stamps Base |
|
|
# |
Receive TANF Yr 1 | -.304 |
||
Change TANF 1-3 | # | # | |
Receive Food Stamps Yr 1 | |||
Change Food Stamps 1-3 | # | # | -.508** |
*Significant at P<.05 **Significant at P<.01 ***Significant at P<.001 # Indicates cell that is gray. |
Fragile Families and Child Well-being Study | |
---|---|
Conducted by | Princeton Universitys Center for Research on Child Wellbeing and
Columbia Universitys Social Indicators Survey Center
Principal Investigators:
Funders: |
Sample | The study is a stratified random sample of US cities with a population of 200,000 or more. The sample is representative of non-marital births in each of the 20 cities and also representative of non-marital births in US cities with populations over 200,000. The sample is new, mostly unwed mothers approached and interviewed at the hospital within 48 hours of giving birth, and fathers were interviewed at the hospital or elsewhere as soon as possible after the birth. Hospitals were chosen over prenatal clinics because of higher response rates from the fathers and to gain a more representative sample of all non-marital births. Baseline interviews were conducted across the United States in: Austin, TX; Pittsburgh, PA; Boston, MA; Oakland, CA; Baltimore, MD; San Antonio, TX; Philadelphia, PA; Detroit, MI; New York City, NY; Jacksonville, FL; San Jose, CA; Indianapolis, IN; Chicago, IL; Toledo, OH; Newark, NJ; Richmond, VA; Milwaukee, WI; Corpus Christi, TX; Norfolk, VA; and Nashville, TN. |
Size | Baseline datasets include 4,898 completed mother interviews (1,186 marital births and 3,712 non-marital births) and 3,830 completed father interviews. One year followup dataset includes 4,365 completed mother interviews and 3,367 completed father interviews. |
Timeframe | Baseline collected between 1998-2000, followups conducted 1 year, 3 years, and 5 years |
Data availability | Baseline, one year and three-year followup currently available. Five-year followup available Spring/Summer 2007 |
Knowledge Gaps | At-risk for homelessness factors (including, doubled-up)
Pregnant Mothers Specific city information Data on children from birth to 5 years Longitudinal design that tracks risk and protective factors |
Relevant Variables | At-risk for Homelessness. Questions related to at-risk for
homelessness predictors include whether the mother needed financial support
from family or friends, whether or not there was someone who could provide
the mother with a place to live, whether family lives in a house owned by
another family. Other relevant questions regarding the previous 12 months,
assess family hunger, eviction, inability to pay utility bills, borrowing
money to pay bills, moving in with others while experiencing financial problems,
staying in a shelter, abandoned building, or automobile or any other place
not meant for regular housing even for one night.
Demographics. Background data on the mother includes, race, education level, and employment status (including income). Domestic Abuse. Father and mothers physical relationship was assessed through questions about sexual, physical, and verbal abuse, including if hospitalization was necessary from abuse. Family Separation. If mother and child were separated, describes where child stayed during separations and why mother and child were originally separated. Government Programs. Utilization of government programs for children including, Healthy Start nurses, Head Start, childcare referral agencies, and WIC. Other governmental programs questioned, include, TANF, SSI, energy and housing assistance, food stamps, workers compensation.
Housing Composition. The number of people currently living in the
house Marital. Marital status and whether the mother is currently pregnant or recently given birth. Mental Health. The mothers level of depression, anxiety, and general mental health. Physical Health. The mothers general level of physical health is assessed. Substance Abuse. Drug use and treatment for alcohol and drug usage assessed. |
As noted in the report, two samples of families from the Fragile Families dataset were selected for re-analysis. An initial sample was limited to families where the mother is 18 years of age or older and has a household income at their Year 1 interview at or below the national poverty threshold based on the year of their interview (1999 through 2001). The second sample, the primary sample used for these analyses, is limited to families where the household income at Year 1 was at or below 50 percent of the national poverty rate.
The one-year followup was used as the time period to measure household income, instead of the baseline, because residential information was not collected until the Year 1 followup, so it matches the time point that homelessness could first be measured. Analyses also showed that approximately one-fifth of the households classified as being below the poverty line at baseline were above the poverty line at Year 1, indicating that the use of baseline income data might too widely broaden the pool of households in the analyses.
A question concerning household income included in the Year 1 Fragile Families survey was the first source of income data used. Of the 4,365 households in the Year 1 sample, 2,525 (58%) gave their total household income. For those women who could not give an exact dollar amount, a followup question asked them for at least an income range. An additional 1,426 woman (33%) answered this question. Using the midpoint of the range as an estimate, household income data was thus available on 91 percent of the Year 1 sample.
The household income information, together with information on household composition (number of children and other adults) was used to determine whether a household was above or below the poverty line. In 1999, for example, a household with one adult and one child needed to have a household income below $11,483 to meet the poverty threshold, while a family with two adults and two children had to be below $16,895. For those families missing any household income information, questions about the receipt of welfare/TANF or Food Stamps were used to indicate whether the family met the poverty criterion. Using these various measures, a total of 1,756 (36%) families were considered part of the poverty sample.
To determine whether families were at or below 50 percent of the poverty threshold, each income criteria (specified by household size) was divided in half. Since no other proxy measure, such as receiving TANF of Food Stamps, appeared to be a reliable indicator of being 50 percent below the poverty level, households with missing income data were excluded from this sample. A total of 838 families (17% of the entire Fragile Families dataset; 48% of the poverty sample) meet these more stringent income qualifications.
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