Glossary

Earned income disregards or earned income disallowances allow participants who receive means-tested government benefits to accept jobs and increase their earnings without facing immediate penalty or reduction in their benefits amount received. Benefits may be reduced after a pre-determined time period, such as 6 or 12 months.

The amount earned through paid employment.

Attainment of a degree or credential.

Programs designed to advance educational attainment or build occupational skills and experience needed to enter an occupational field. Education and training outcomes involve the attainment of a degree or credential.

The highest level of education or training completed by a person.

A standardized measure of the magnitude of the impact of the program, which is the difference in outcomes between the program group and the comparison group. The effect size is calculated by dividing the impact shown in the study by the standard deviation for that measure. Effect sizes facilitate comparisons across different outcomes, settings, and programs. This helps us make direct and meaningful comparisons so users can compare, for example, an impact of 10 percent on employment rates with an impact of $1,200 on annual earnings, as well as to the average of these two effects across programs.

The assessment of the Pathways to Work Evidence Clearinghouse, based on the existing evidence from impact studies, of the extent to which a given program improves a specific type of outcome. The effectiveness rating indicates whether the program is likely to produce favorable results if faithfully replicated with a similar population. After we review research on a program, we assign effectiveness ratings to indicate how effective the program is at improving each of four types of outcomes: employment, earnings, public benefit receipt, and education and training. The ratings depend on (1) the quality of the impact study or studies conducted of the program and (2) the favorability (or lack thereof), statistical significance, and consistency of the study findings for that type of outcome.

•  Well-supported. We have strong and consistent evidence that the program produces favorable results for a specific outcome, such as short-term earnings. Well-supported programs have at least two impact studies of moderate or high quality that show evidence of statistically significant and favorable findings within the outcome.
•  Supported. We have some evidence that the program produces favorable results for a given outcome. Supported programs have at least one study of moderate or high quality that shows evidence of statistically significant and favorable findings within the outcome, but the evidence is less conclusive than that for well-supported programs.
•  Not supported. We have evidence from impact studies of moderate or high quality that the program is unlikely to improve a given outcome. Studies of these programs have found only a pattern of null and/or unfavorable findings.
•  Mixed support. We have some evidence from impact studies of moderate or high quality that indicates the program improves a given outcome, and some evidence that indicates it worsens that outcome.
•  Insufficient evidence to assess support. We have evidence from a single impact study of moderate or high quality that studied the program’s effect on a given outcome, but the effect was not statistically significant.
•  Cannot assess support. We did not find any studies of moderate or high quality that studied the program’s effect on a given outcome. These programs require further study to support conclusions about their effectiveness.

People who have a paid job from an employer or who are self-employed—either full-time or part-time.

Services provided at the place of employment or by the employer to participants while they are working to support employment retention and career goal achievement. Services include program staff working with employers to identify additional training needed for participants to achieve competency in assigned work tasks or helping participants access retention strategies offered by the employer, such as workplace mentoring or work-life balance services.

A measure of work status, duration, or consistency of work.

Ongoing collaborative assistance with setting and pursuing goals related to employment. Coaching typically is a participant-led process that involves identifying and addressing employment barriers, building motivation, and working towards self-defined employment goals.

Services designed to support participants who already have a job.

The legal status of a person’s relationship with an employer, if any.