While several studies have described a high prevalence of violent victimization among women on welfare, few have documented the impact of violence and problem drinking and/or heavy drug use (substance abuse) as impediments to self sufficiency. This information is necessary to inform and target public health prevention, treatment and community interventions among this sample of poor women on welfare. We propose to use secondary data from a large representative sample of welfare recipients to describe service use among women reporting interpersonal violence and substance abuse over five years. We will explore whether service use decreases repeat violence, substance abuse and welfare dependency. The study will utilize data from a five-year longitudinal study of welfare clients from a Northern California county. Baseline interviews have been conducted on 1,235 women applying for welfare benefits in 2001. Then at 12, 24, 36 and 48 months after baseline, recipients were re-interviewed. The proposed analyses will be carried out at a time when the welfare rolls have dropped dramatically and there is growing interest in the remaining clients who may have multiple barriers to employment, including histories of violent victimization and substance abuse. ? ? The specific aims and hypotheses of this study address these policy concerns as well as the broader scientific agenda of understanding how services can mitigate cycles of violence and substance abuse in the lives of low-income women. The epidemiological analyses conducted under Specific Aim 1 will establish the scope and extent of the problem of interpersonal violence and alcohol and drug problems over the five-year study among women on welfare. Work under Aim 2 will describe the impact of violent victimization and substance abuse on women's ability to perform in new welfare-to-work programs.
Aim 3 will address whether women experiencing violent victimization with or without substance use problems are being identified by the welfare system and are receiving appropriate services. Lastly, among women reporting violence and substance use, our Aim 4 will examine how service might decrease the impact of repeated violence and substance abuse on women's attempts to gain economic independence. ? ? ?
