Family economic self-sufficiency

Some early childhood home visiting models in the HomVEE review have a goal of improving the self-sufficiency of participating families. To achieve this goal, models facilitate parents’ engagement in educational and training programs, and encourage their pursuit of employment. Some models also help families access family support services such as temporary cash assistance and supplemental food programs. Home visitors accomplish these tasks by providing information about services in the community and linking families to self-sufficiency programs. Some may directly provide educational and training services (such as GED classes).

Outcomes in this domain measure a family’s economic well-being, including income and earnings, as well as receipt of means-tested public assistance and access to resources such as housing and transportation. The family economic self-sufficiency outcomes also measure employment and educational enrollment or attainment, and other sources of support such as child support from a noncustodial parent. Measures of the mother’s partnership status (married, cohabiting, and so on) are ineligible for review. Outcome measures in this domain include measures of public assistance receipt that are based on government administrative records and maternal self-reports of service receipt and economic outcomes. 

Primary caregiver and overall household economic wellbeing outcomes belong in this domain. These include primary caregivers’ educational attainment and enrollment, and their income and earnings. Eligible outcomes also include overall household income, access to transportation, other sources of financial support such as child support from a noncustodial parent, and receipt of means-tested public assistance. (The favorability of positive or negative findings in this area may be dependent on context or other factors. In some cases, the HomVEE team will confer with subject matter experts to make determinations about whether a finding is favorable, or unfavorable or ambiguous.) By extension, including measures of the father’s or mother’s current partner’s socioeconomic status (such as that person’s education, employment, or earnings), are ineligible for review unless (1) the manuscript reports these same outcomes for the mother as well and (2) the father or partner is coresident (so that HomVEE can assess the overall situation of the household). 

In-kind support that the primary caregiver received is categorized in this domain, whereas social/emotional support to the mother belongs in the maternal health domain. HomVEE characterizes more support as favorable. (The favorability of positive or negative findings in this area may be dependent on context or other factors. In some cases, the HomVEE team will confer with subject matter experts to make determinations about whether a finding is favorable, or unfavorable or ambiguous.) 

Measures of the mother’s partnership status (married, cohabiting, and so forth) and of whether the family resides with the child’s grantparent(s) are not eligible for review, because they are not clear indicators of family economic self-sufficiency.

The effects shown in the research are grouped into four categories: (1) favorable, (2) no effect, (3) unfavorable or ambiguous, and (4) not measured. Results for models that only have low-rated research are listed as “not applicable.” For more information on these categories please read the procedures and standards handbook. Only results from manuscripts that receive a moderate or high rating are considered below. This table includes manuscripts links to more information on the model’s effectiveness, implementation, and details on findings in this domain.

Effects shown in research — Family economic self-sufficiency