Study Details | Pathways to Work

3137.01-Eugene, OR, Employme

Study quality: High

High

Reason for the rating: This study received a high study quality rating because it is a low-attrition randomized controlled trial with no known issues that suggest the findings cannot be attributed to the intervention.

Intervention: Progress Towards Retention, Opportunities, Growth, Enhancement and Self-Sufficiency (PROGRESS)

Population and employment barriers:

Employment status and income level (Employed), Parents (Single parents)

Services provided:

Case management, Employment retention services, Financial education, Soft skills training, Work readiness activities (Employment coaching, Job search assistance)

Setting: Urban only

Study design

Design:

Randomized controlled trial

Study group formation:

The study focused on employed people who were leaving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and who had completed an "I Have a Job" form (required of newly employed TANF applicants and those exiting TANF working at least 20 hours per week). Evaluators randomly assigned clients without first contacting them or confirming their interest in participating in the study. Assignment occurred from June 2002 to June 2004. This study includes 1,137 research sample members who were single parents. (Another study examines effects for two-parent families.) The evaluators administered a 12-month survey to all 550 single parents that (1) were randomly assigned between October 2002 and October 2003, (2) spoke English or Spanish, and (3) were at least 18 years of age.

Time period of study:

Random assignment occurred between June 2002 and June 2004, and participants were followed for three years.

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

Other outcome domains examined:

None

Study funded by:

The Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation in ACF at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services funded the study, with support from the U.S. Department of Labor.

Results

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Outcome domain	Measure	Timing	Study quality by finding	Comparison group mean	Intervention group mean	Impact	Units	Sample size
Increase short-term earnings	Total earnings over follow-up period	Quarters 1–6	High	12,471.00	12,800.00	329.00	2003 dollars	1,137
Increase short-term earnings	Weekly earnings	12 months	High	209.00	194.00	-15.00	2003 dollars	440
Increase long-term earnings	Annual earnings	Year 3	High	8,543.00	7,689.00	-854.00	2005 dollars	1,137
Increase short-term employment	Currently employed	Month 12	High	68.80	65.30	-3.50	percentage points	440
Increase short-term employment	Employed for four consecutive quarters	Quarters 1–6	High	53.90	56.10	2.20	percentage points	1,137
Increase short-term employment	Ever employed, quarterly	Quarter 6	High	61.90	63.50	1.60	percentage points	1,137
Increase long-term employment	Employed for four consecutive quarters	Year 3	High	42.60	35.90	-6.70	percentage points	1,137
Increase long-term employment	Ever employed, annual	Year 3	High	72.10	65.10	-7.00	percentage points	1,137
Decrease short-term benefit receipt	Amount of AFDC/TANF benefits, follow-up period	Quarters 1–6	High	1,292.00	1,068.00	-224.00	2003 dollars	1,137
Decrease short-term benefit receipt	Amount of Food Stamps/SNAP benefits, follow-up period	Quarters 1–6	High	3,603.00	3,591.00	-12.00	2003 dollars	1,137
Decrease short-term benefit receipt	Received AFDC/TANF, follow-up period	Quarters 1–6	High	41.90	38.70	-3.20	percentage points	1,137
Decrease short-term benefit receipt	Received Food Stamps/SNAP, follow-up period	Quarters 1–6	High	96.50	95.80	-0.70	percentage points	1,137
Decrease long-term benefit receipt	Amount of AFDC/TANF benefits, annual	Years 1–3	High	2,252.00	2,253.00	1.00	2004 dollars	1,137
Decrease long-term benefit receipt	Average annual AFDC/TANF benefits, follow-up period	Years 1–3	High	674.00	657.00	-17.00	2004 dollars	1,137
Decrease long-term benefit receipt	Received AFDC/TANF, annual	Year 3	High	19.10	19.90	0.80	percentage points	1,137
Decrease long-term benefit receipt	Received Food Stamps/SNAP, annual	Year 3	High	74.10	74.50	0.40	percentage points	1,137

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.

Findings quality key:

High
Moderate

Study quality terms?

The findings quality describe our confidence that a given study’s finding is because of the intervention. 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 intervention, rather than due to chance. Findings are described as moderate-to-large if the intervention 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

All individuals in the sample were employed single parents. At baseline, sample members were mostly White (85 percent) and female (92 percent), with an average age of 30. About 80 percent had at least a high school diploma or equivalent certification. Slightly more than half (57 percent) were recipients of cash assistance at baseline, and about one-third (33 percent) were cash assistance applicants.

Age

Mean age

30 years

Sex

Female	92%
Male	8%

Participant race and ethnicity

Black or African American	3%
White, not Hispanic	85%
Asian	1%
Another race	1%
American Indian or Alaska Native	2%
More than one race	2%
Hispanic or Latino of any race	6%

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.

Family status

Parents	100%
Single parents	100%

Participant employment and public benefit status

Were employed

100%

Participant education

Had some postsecondary education	14%
Had a high school diploma or GED	80%
Did not have a high school diploma or GED	20%

Intervention implementation

Implementing organization:

Oregon TANF and Lane Community College

Program history:

The program operated from February 2002 to July 2005.

Intervention services:

The Progress Towards Retention, Opportunities, Growth, Enhancement, and Self-Sufficiency (PROGRESS) program aimed to provide employed, former TANF recipients with services to support continued employment and career progress. A case manager (from the Oregon Department of Human Services) and a career development specialist (from Lane Community College) worked with each client. The team created a career development plan, including a needs assessment, career goals, and action steps, and documented any need for vocational assessments. Subsequent meeting topics depended on participant needs but included coaching, job retention services, job search assistance, education and training referrals, and counseling and advice on topics such as budgeting and conflict resolution. Case managers also worked with clients to obtain additional benefits, such as Medicaid coverage, child care, and transportation assistance.

Mandatory services:

None.

Comparison services:

People in the comparison group had access to employment-related services in the community. They could access the same employment, training, and supportive services as individuals in the PROGRESS program but did not receive support in finding or enrolling in these services.

Service receipt duration:

Program services were available for one year.

Intervention funding:

Oregon TANF program (primary); Department of Labor.

Study publications

Hendra, Richard, Keri-Nicole Dillman, Gayle Hamilton, Erika Lundquist, Karin Martinson, Melissa Wavelet, Aaron Hill, and Sonya Williams (2010). The Employment Retention and Advancement project: How effective are different approaches aiming to increase employment retention and advancement? Final impacts for twelve models, Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families. Available at https://www.acf.hhs.gov/opre/resource/the-employment-retention-and-advancement-project-how-effective-are.

Molina, Frieda, Mark van Dok, Richard Hendra, Gayle Hamilton, and Wan-Lae Cheng (2009). The Employment Retention and Advancement project: Findings for the Eugene and Medford, Oregon, models: Implementation and early impacts for two programs that sought to encourage advancement among low-income workers, Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Available at https://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/opre/era_eug_medi.pdf.

View the glossary for more information about these and other terms used on this page.

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

Study of Progress Towards Retention, Opportunities, Growth, Enhancement and Self-Sufficiency (PROGRESS)—Single parents