Dates and Deadlines: Behavioral Strategies to Increase Engagement in Child Support

Autor/inn/en	Anzelone, Caitlin; Timm, Jonathan; Kusayeva, Yana
Institution	MDRC; MEF Associates; Center for Policy Research (CPR)
Titel	Dates and Deadlines: Behavioral Strategies to Increase Engagement in Child Support
Quelle	(2018), (13 Seiten) PDF als Volltext kostenfreie Datei Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Monographie
Schlagwörter	Children; Financial Support; Legal Responsibility; Parents; Parent Participation; Compliance (Legal); Intervention; Program Effectiveness; Outreach Programs; Behavior Modification; Randomized Controlled Trials; Comparative Analysis; Fathers; Mothers; Georgia + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Child; Kind; Kinder; Finanzielle Förderung; Strafmündigkeit; Eltern; Elternmitwirkung; Jobcoaching; Behaviour modification; Verhaltensänderung; Mother; Mutter
Abstract	State child support programs secure financial support for children whose parents live apart. These programs establish paternity, set orders for the amounts parents are required to pay, and collect and distribute payments. An essential step in the process of establishing paternity and setting an order of support is delivering legal documents to the person named as a parent (frequently referred to as the "noncustodial parent"). This step of delivering documents is known as "service." A person who comes into the child support office to accept service voluntarily is actively engaging in the child support process. In doing so, the person benefits from reduced fees, a greater voice in the legal process, and a better understanding of the way an order is established. The child support program benefits from increased efficiency, reduced costs, and the ability to provide more information to parents. With these benefits in mind, the Behavioral Interventions for Child Support Services (BICS) team worked with the Georgia Division of Child Support Services (DCSS) to test a new form of outreach intended to get more people to accept service voluntarily. The BICS team randomly assigned people in three counties to receive either the existing or redesigned outreach materials during an 11-month period. The test measured the percentage of people who visited the office to accept service, as well as longer-term outcomes related to payment that may have seen effects if the redesigned meetings improved interactions between parents and staff members. This document discusses background on the process the BICS team used to design the intervention, the study's findings, and implications of the research for the child support community. (ERIC).
Anmerkungen	MDRC. 16 East 34th Street 19th Floor, New York, NY 10016-4326. Tel: 212-532-3200; Fax: 212-684-0832; e-mail: publications@mdrc.org; Web site: http://www.mdrc.org
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2020/1/01