Study Details | Pathways to Work

101040-Study of Adult Conne

Study quality: High

High

Reason for the rating: This study received a high study quality rating because it is a randomized controlled trial with low attrition, suggesting the findings can be attributed to the program.

Program: Adult Connections Team

Characteristics of study participants:

Unemployed, Young adults (age 16-24)

Services provided:

Case management, Job readiness, Peer mentoring, Soft skills training, Unpaid work experience/internships

Setting: Tested in multiple settings

Methods and Standards Protocol version used for review: Version 2.0

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Study design

Design:

Randomized controlled trial

Study group formation:

The study randomly assigned youth ages 17 to 20 currently in foster care to Adult Connections Team (ACT) or to services as usual. A complete list of youth in the age range was obtained from participating agencies. Youth on this list were screened for study eligibility, which included a caseworker assessment of potential need for enhanced services and having a foster care placement in Cook County, Illinois. A total of 185 youth were randomly assigned, with 93 youth assigned to the ACT program group and 92 youth to the comparison group.

Time period of study:

The study ran from 2014 to 2018. Study enrollment ran from 2014 to 2017. Study data collection occurred from 2014 to 2018, with outcomes measured at a one-year follow-up survey.

Primary outcome domains examined:

Increase short-term earnings

Other outcome domains examined:

Criminal justice, mental health, social support

Study funded by:

The study was funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Grant ACF-ACYF-CW-0186.

Results

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Outcome domain	Measure	Timing	Study quality by finding	Impact	Units	Findings	Sample size
Increase short-term earnings	Weekly earnings	Year 1	High	52.50	2017 dollars		152

Short-term outcomes are those measured 18 months or fewer after participants are first offered services. Long-term outcomes are those measured between 18 months and 5 years after participants are first offered services. Very long-term outcomes are those measured 5 years or more after participants are first offered services.

Means are not displayed when not reported or not aligned with the impact estimates. For example, if the impact estimate is regression-adjusted but only unadjusted means are reported in the study, the unadjusted means are not displayed as they are not aligned with the adjusted impact estimate.

Impact estimates are not shown when the estimate units cannot be converted to natural units.

Findings quality key:

High
Moderate

Study quality terms?

The findings quality describe our confidence that a given study’s finding is because of the program. We do not display findings that rate low.

Findings key:

A moderate-to-large favorable finding that is unlikely to be due to chance
A moderate-to-large favorable finding that might to be due to chance
A small favorable finding that is unlikely to be due to chance
A small favorable finding that might be due to chance
A favorable finding that is unlikely to be due to chance, but we cannot determine the standardized effect size
A favorable finding that might be due to chance, but we cannot determine the standardized effect size
A moderate-to-large unfavorable finding that is unlikely to be due to chance
A moderate-to-large unfavorable finding that might to be due to chance
A small unfavorable finding that is unlikely to be due to chance
A small unfavorable finding that might be due to chance
An unfavorable finding that is unlikely to be due to chance, but we cannot determine the standardized effect size
An unfavorable finding that might be due to chance, but we cannot determine the standardized effect size
A finding that is unlikely to be due to chance, but we cannot determine the standardized effect size or direction
A finding of no effect that might be due to chance

Favorable findings are impacts in a direction that is socially desirable. Statistical significance indicates the likelihood that a study finding is due to the program, rather than due to chance. Findings are described as moderate-to-large if the program produced a sufficiently large change in the outcome. An impact receives this designation if the standardized effect size is equal to or greater than 0.25 or equal to or less than -0.25.

Sample characteristics

Study participants were youth ages 17 to 20 in foster care placements. Most youth were unemployed (81 percent) and Black (80 percent), and the majority of youth were female (64 percent).

Age

Mean age	18 years
Young adults (age 16-24)	100%

Sex

Female	64%
Male	36%

Race and ethnicity

Black or African American	80%
White	4%
Hispanic or Latino of any race	11%
Another race	8%
More than one race	8%

The race and ethnicity categories may sum to more than 100 percent if the authors reported race and ethnicity separately; in these cases, we report the category White, rather than White, not Hispanic.

Employment and public benefit status

Were employed	19%
Were unemployed	81%

Education

Had a high school diploma or GED

36%

Specific employment barriers

Had a mental illness	13%
Were involved with the justice system	43%

Program implementation

Implementing organization:

Child welfare agencies

Program history:

Adult Connections Team (ACT) was developed by two collaborating child welfare agencies based on previous pilot programs for mentoring and summer job readiness, as well as internship programs for graduating high school seniors.

Program services:

ACT was an enhanced services program that involved outreach by a youth specialist and coordinated mentoring, job readiness training, and externship services. After outreach from a youth specialist, youth could choose to participate in the mentoring component, the employment component, or both. After youth specialists coordinated a match, trained mentors met with youth for at least one year, with ongoing support from agency staff. Participants also had access to peer mentoring and support activities, such as dinners and social activities attended by program alumni and staff. The employment component was a job readiness program that provided both an individualized 20-hour training program focused on soft skill development and placement in an externship to develop job skills. The program group also received services as usual, which included independent living skills programs, mental health services, and other mentoring and job skills training programs.

Mandatory services:

None

Comparison services:

The comparison group received services as usual, which included independent living skills programs, mental health services, and other mentoring and job skills training programs.

Service receipt duration:

Mentors committed to working with youth for a year or more, though the average duration of mentorship was five to six months. The job readiness component included 20 hours of training with an unspecified duration for externship placement.

Program funding:

The study did not describe the program funding source.

Study publications

Leathers, Sonya J., Casey Holtschneider, Melissa Ludington, Ellen V. Ross, and James L. Barnett (2023). Mentoring, employment assistance, and enhanced staff outreach for older youth in care: Outcomes from a randomized controlled trial, Children and Youth Services, 153: Article 107095. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2023.107095

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Study of Adult Connections Team