Study Details | Pathways to Work

25436-Transition WORKS

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: Transition WORKS

Characteristics of study participants:

Disability(ies), Public benefits recipients, Unemployed, Young adults (age 16-24)

Services provided:

Case management, Employment coaching, Job development, Job placement, Job readiness, Job search assistance, Paid work experience/internships, Post-employment participant follow-up, Unpaid work experience/internships

Setting: Tested in multiple settings

Methods and Standards Protocol version used for review: Version 1.0

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Study design

Design:

Randomized controlled trial

Study group formation:

Youth who received Social Security Administration (SSA) disability benefits; lived in Erie County, New York; and were ages 16 to 25 were eligible for the study. Researchers used SSA administrative data to randomly select eligible youth and then contacted them for baseline interviews and consent until researchers met enrollment targets. If youth participated in interviews and provided consent, they were enrolled in the study and randomly assigned to the program and comparison groups at a rate of six program to five comparison group members. Recruitment occurred from January 2007 to March 2008.

Time period of study:

People were enrolled in the study from January 2007 to March 2008 and followed for three years thereafter.

Primary outcome domains examined:

Increase short-term earnings, Increase long-term earnings, Increase short-term employment, Increase long-term employment, Decrease short-term benefit receipt, Decrease long-term benefit receipt, Increase education and training

Other outcome domains examined:

Attitudes and expectations, Independence, Job characteristics, Health insurance, Criminal justice, Living arrangements

Study funded by:

SSA

Results

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Outcome domain	Measure	Timing	Study quality by finding	Impact	Units	Sample size
Increase short-term earnings	Annual earnings	Year 1	High	-3.00	2008 dollars	673
Increase short-term earnings	Annual earnings	Year 1	High	81.00	2008 dollars	827
Increase long-term earnings	Annual earnings	Year 3	High	469.00	2008 dollars	717
Increase long-term earnings	Annual earnings	Year 3	High	208.00	2008 dollars	827
Increase short-term employment	Currently employed	Month 12	High	5.30	percentage points	717
Increase short-term employment	Currently employed	Month 12	High	1.20	percentage points	710
Increase short-term employment	Ever employed, annual	Year 1	High	3.70	percentage points	827
Increase short-term employment	Percentage of weeks worked, annual	Year 1	High	1.90	percentage points	720
Increase long-term employment	Ever employed, annual	Year 3	High	1.40	percentage points	827
Decrease short-term benefit receipt	Amount of SSA benefits, annual	Year 1	High	83.00	2008 dollars	837
Decrease short-term benefit receipt	Any person in household currently receives SNAP	Month 12	High	2.00	percentage points	738
Decrease short-term benefit receipt	Any person in household currently receives TANF	Month 12	High	-1.20	percentage points	697
Decrease short-term benefit receipt	Currently receives public health insurance	Month 12	High	-2.10	percentage points	692
Decrease short-term benefit receipt	Received SSA benefits, annual	Year 1	High	-0.50	percentage points	837
Decrease long-term benefit receipt	Amount of SSA benefits, annual	Year 3	High	540.00	2008 dollars	827
Decrease long-term benefit receipt	Receipt of TANF, SNAP, or housing assistance, monthly	Month 36	High	-1.70	percentage points	686
Decrease long-term benefit receipt	Received SSA benefits, annual	Year 3	High	2.50	percentage points	827
Increase education and training	Received high school diploma or GED	36 months	High	27.00	percentage points	716

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

The study focused on people ages 16 to 25 who received SSA disability benefits. The sample was 62 percent male, 55 percent White, 35 percent Black, and 9 percent Hispanic (of any race). At baseline, about two-fifths (42 percent) had never worked for pay, 95 percent received Supplemental Security Income, and 96 percent received public health insurance. The average age of participants was 20, and, at baseline, 52 percent were attending school. Forty percent had a high school diploma or equivalent certification. All people in the study had a disability, with cognitive or developmental disabilities (44 percent), physical disabilities (19 percent), and mental illness (18 percent) reported most often as an individual’s primary disabling condition.

Age

Mean age	20 years
Young adults (age 16-24)	100%

Sex

Female	39%
Male	61%

Race and ethnicity

Black or African American	35%
White	56%
Hispanic or Latino of any race	9%
American Indian or Alaska Native	1%
Unknown, not reported, or other	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	18%
Were unemployed	82%
Public benefits recipients	100%

Education

Had a high school diploma or GED	42%
Did not have a high school diploma or GED	58%

Specific employment barriers

Had a disability	100%
Had a mental illness	17%

Program implementation

Implementing organization:

The Erie 1 Board of Cooperative Educational Services implemented the program in partnership with Neighborhood Legal Services, the Community Employment Office, and the Parent Network of Western New York.

Program history:

A version of the Transition WORKS program was piloted for three years before study launch. It was redesigned for the Youth Transition Demonstration project to include a greater emphasis on employment services.

Program services:

Transition WORKS provided services to youth ages 16 to 25 who received SSA disability benefits and resided in Erie County, New York. The program included services designed to support youth in transitioning to independence, emphasizing youth empowerment. Services included self-determination workshops; benefits counseling and planning; information and support for families of youth participants; employment services, such as career preparation, soft-skills training, job search assistance, job development and placement, job coaching, job tours, apprenticeships, internships, and paid employment; education support, such as counseling and advising; and case management. The program also offered follow-up services after a participant obtained employment. Finally, participants were eligible to receive matching funds in individual development accounts (bank accounts with funds dedicating to starting a business, educational expenses, purchasing a car, or purchasing or repairing a home), financial literacy training, and waivers to SSA program rules, which increased the amount of earnings that are disregarded in calculating benefits for those still enrolled in school or career exploration; decreased the rate at which benefits are reduced as earnings increase; extended benefits for those who could face losing them at age 18 or when their case was re-reviewed; and excluded certain financial accounts from asset calculations.

Mandatory services:

None.

Comparison services:

Youth in the comparison condition could receive other services available in the community.

Service receipt duration:

Transition WORKS provided services to participants for up to 18 months.

Program funding:

SSA

Cost information:

The average cost of providing the intervention was $5,783 per participant. The average cost of providing comparison group services was $0 per person. The net intervention cost, or difference between the two, was $5,783 per person. This represents how much more it cost to provide intervention services compared to comparison services.

These figures are based on cost information reported by study authors. The Pathways to Work converted that information to a single amount expressed in 2024 dollars; for details, see the FAQ. This information is not an official price tag or guarantee.

Study publications

Fraker, Thomas, Alison Black, Arif Mamun, Michelle Manno, John Martinez, Bonnie O'Day, Meghan O'Toole, Anu Rangarajan, and Debbie Reed (2011). The Social Security Administration's Youth Transition Demonstration Projects: Interim report on Transition WORKS, Princeton, NJ: Mathematica Policy Research. Available at https://www.ssa.gov/disabilityresearch/documents/Erie%20Final%20Interim%20Report%202-22-11.pdf.

Fraker, Thomas, Arif Mamun, Todd Honeycutt, Allison Thompkins, and Erin Jacobs Valentine (2014). Final report on the Youth Transition Demonstration Evaluation, Princeton, NJ: Mathematica Policy Research. Available at https://www.ssa.gov/disabilityresearch/documents/YTD%20Final%20Report%20508%20Compliant%2011-11-2014.pdf.

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Pathways to Work refers to programs by the names used in study reports or manuscripts. Some program names may use language that is not consistent with our style guide, preferences, or the terminology we use to describe populations.

Study of Transition WORKS