Publication Date
7-1-2010
Document Type
Article
Abstract
Although substantial numbers of women seeking Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) report domestic violence, few receive mandated services through the Family Violence Option (FVO). This study used transcripts ofinterviews between welfare caseworkers and their clients to identify and classify the responses made by workers to client disclosures of abuse and to assess the match or mismatch of these responses with FVO policy requirements. Only 22 of 782 client interviews involved the disclosure of abuse to the welfare caseworker. A typology of worker responses was created, from least to most engaged. This typology shows that only half of those who disclosed abuse received assistance from the welfare worker, despite policy mandates that clients receive information on TANF waivers and community resources. This study suggests that problems with implementation of the FVO reflect a systemic reluctance to address issues of violence with women rather than problems of individual workers.
Publication Title
Social Work
Volume
55
Issue
3
First Page
235
Last Page
243
Publisher Policy
pre-print, post-print
Open Access Status
OA Deposit
Recommended Citation
Lindhorst, Taryn; Casey, Erin A.; and Meyers, Marcia, "Frontline Worker Responses To Domestic Violence Disclosure In Public Welfare Offices" (2010). Social Work & Criminal Justice Publications. 64.
https://digitalcommons.tacoma.uw.edu/socialwork_pub/64
