Explore the ways that work, welfare, and material hardship affect the mental health of low-income women! Welfare, Work, and Well-Being reflects a growing interest among the research, policy and media communities in the connections between the psychological and economic well-being of poor women and their families. The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act (PRWORA) of 1996, and the sharp declines in welfare caseloads that began even prior to the legislation, have changed the lives of poor women and children in critical ways. The social scientists in this volume investigate the associations among welfare, work, social roles, child well-being, material hardship, and women's mental health. Through careful and pointed analysis, the authors illustrate the important implications and challenges for future programs and policies. Demonstrating some of the most significant and up-to-date research, Welfare, Work, and Well-Being is a must for anyone who is interested in the impact of welfare reform on the lives of low-income women and children. Welfare, Work, and Well-Being addresses: symptoms of depression among women on welfare the ways that receiving welfare during her child rearing years can later affect a mother's physical and psychological health the well-being of 425 “able-bodied” women and men who lost cash assistance benefits when Michigan's General Assistance program ended the symptoms of depression and hopelessness in single mothers on and off welfare the importance of considering the issues of health and domestic violence for women transitioning from welfare to work financial strain, maternal depressive affect, and parenting stress among current welfare recipients and former recipients who are employed the relationship between work and depressive symptoms for poor single mothers who have experienced homelessness the relationship between food insufficiency and health in single female welfare recipients With helpful charts, figures, and tables, Welfare, Work, and Well-Being puts up-to-date research (and thoughtful examinations of its implications) where it belongs--in your hands!