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Summary, Speakers

Wednesday, June 12, 2002
11:30am-1:30pm
Russell Senate Office Building 
Washington, DC

This briefing was jointly sponsored by the Federation of Behavioral, Psychological, and Cognitive Sciences, the Foundation for Child Development, and the American Sociological Association in support of the Decade of Behavior themes of "health" and "education."

Summary:

This briefing was organized in response to the upcoming reauthorization of welfare legislation, which, under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) bill, proposes that $300 million be dedicated to the promotion of "healthy marriage" for welfare recipients. The $300 million proposal is intended to improve childhood outcomes by reducing the incidence of poverty in single-parent homes.  But is marriage actually a determinant of childhood outcomes?  Four experts on child development and welfare policy were invited to present their research findings on the importance of marriage on child development.

[Read the full presentation summaries on the Federation website.]

Speakers: 

[View speaker bios on the Federation website]

Dr. Jeanne Brooks-Gunn, Columbia University
"Children and Welfare Reform: Who Benefits and Who Does Not?"

Dr. Andrew Cherlin, Johns Hopkins University
"Marriage, Family Formation, and Welfare Reform"

Dr. Melvin Wilson, University of Virginia
"The Influence of Social and Personal Factors on Fathers' Involvement in Family Life"

Dr. Brian Wilcox, University of Nebraska, Lincoln
"Promoting Marriage in Welfare Reform: What's the Evidence Supporting These Efforts?"

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