Volume 9 – Issue 1 – 2005
Osamu Aoki and Deborah McDowell Aoki
Barbara C. Medley, Marilyn Edelhoch, Qiduan Liu, and Linda S. Martin
Domenico Parisi, Deborah A. Harris, Steven Michael Grice, Michael Taquino, and Duane A Gill
David T. Mayeda, Scott K. Okamoto, and Gregory Y. Mark
“Invisible Poverty in Japan: Case Studies and Realities of Single Mothers”
Osamu Aoki
Hokkaido University
and
Deborah McDowell Aoki
Abstract: This article addresses escalating poverty in Japan among single-mother
families within an ideological arena where social problems are obfuscated by a growing
acceptance of American-based individualism, rather than rightfully grounding such
problems in societal structures. The work postulates a theoretical framework
based on intergenerational poverty formed within the nexus of capitalism, which
in turn is linked to present and historical familialism. An in-depth study
of twenty-eight families is presented, as well as a critical analysis of contemporary
issues in social welfare policies and debates in Japan’s conservative political
and cultural milieu. The theoretical orientation advocated in this article
is crucial in rendering invisible poverty “visible,” representing a
first step in developing a societal awareness of and stronger advocacy for impoverished
people in present-day Japan.
“Understanding Community Building in Urban America”
Jim Fraser
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
and
Edward Kick
Middle Tennessee State University
Abstract: Neighborhood-based community building has been positioned as an
effective strategy for combating urban poverty in America. This paper considers
three predominant models of community building in America, and focuses particularly
on a contemporary derivative of these – community-building initiatives that
claim to address the circumstances of urban poverty through people- and placed-based
neighborhood revitalization. The empirical evidence shows that the impacts
of community building on poverty often are left undocumented. Community-building
initiatives can increase neighborhood organization, connect neighborhood actors
with existing political-economic structures at the city level, enhance neighborhood-level
infrastructural development, increase community surveillance of crime and provide
new homeownership opportunities. Yet tensions appear to exist around economic,
political and land-use issues, in part due to “consensus-based” planning
that actually limits residential involvement in a variety of ways. Further,
when taken as a whole community building initiatives in some respects serve the
already advantaged, instead of being a new agenda for political-economic changes
that aid the urban poor.
“Success after Welfare: What Makes the Difference? An Ethnographic Study of Welfare Leavers in South Carolina”
Barbara C. Medley
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Marilyn Edelhoch
South Carolina Department of Social Services
Qiduan Liu
South Carolina Department of Social Services
and
Linda S. Martin
South Carolina Department of Social Services
Abstract: The success of state welfare-to-work programs has been closely scrutinized
as the 1996 TANF legislation underwent extensive review prior to renewal in 2003.
Although most states’ caseloads have b been reduced by more than half, the
poverty rates have not proportionately declined, and obtaining jobs that offer economic
security remains a persistent problem for post-welfare women. The goal of
this ethnographic study was to discern the factors that distinguished women with
greater success after welfare from those who were less successful. Factors
related to levels of assistance received, resource utilization, mentorship, and
self-help attitudes differentiated the experiences of more successful women from
those less successful. Public policy implications of these findings are discussed.
“Does the TANF Work-First Initiative Help Low Income Families Make Successful Welfare-to-Work Transitions?
Domenico Parisi
Mississippi State University
Deborah A. Harris
Mississippi State University
Steven Michael Grice
Mississippi State University
Michael Taquino
Mississippi State University
and
Duane A. Gil
Mississippi State University
Abstract: A general argument is that how states implement their TANF policy
and the extent to which states build partnerships with local communities might affect
the chances for low-income families to make a successful welfare-to-work transition.
Using data gathered through a key-informant procedure, we find that many low-income
families in Mississippi left the TANF rolls because the state implemented “front
and back door” policy aimed at reducing caseloads rather than placing clients
on a path to self-sufficiency. The results show that the state has failed
to address the “true barriers” to work, such as a “mismatch”
between training and available jobs, appropriate economic development and transportation
and childcare needs. The results also indicate that shifting public responsibility
to the clients and local communities will further compromise the well being of many
low-income families because, under TANF, they will pay the cost of their own disadvantage.
“Leaving and Losing Jobs: Resistance of Rural Low-Income Mothers”
E. Brooke Kelly
University of North Carolina at Pembroke
Abstract: The expanding service economy demands an increasing supply of low-wage
workers who, increasingly, are women and racial minorities. At the same time
that women are being pulled into these low-paying and often inflexible and unstable
jobs, reforms in the welfare system have removed the economic safety net for many
women and children. This paper relies on in-depth interviews with rural low-income
mothers in a midwestern state to examine the importance of the context of working
conditions in shaping job turnover. In the often brittle and unyielding conditions
of the low-wage, primarily service work available in one rural county, “breaks”
– either by quitting or losing a job – are not an uncommon experience.
I argue that within the context of these low-wage service jobs, which offer employees
little autonomy, quitting may be one of the only forms of resistance available to
workers.
“Adapting Culture in a Colonial and Capitalized World: Role Strain and Acculturation in Hawaiian and Samoan Families”
David T. Mayeda
University of Hawaii at Manoa
Scott K. Okamoto
Arizona State University
and
Gregory Y. Mark
California State University, Sacramento
Abstract: Despite being known for its culture of generosity, tropical beaches,
and tourist-friendly atmosphere, Hawaii’s colonial history and present-day
political economy have extended social stratification along ethnic lines, resulting
in a number of unfortunate outcomes. In particular, Hawaiian and Samoan families
residing in Hawaii have been negatively influenced by social stratification, and
have had to adapt their cultures to survive in a capitalist society. This
paper explores how acculturation into an American capitalist culture contributes
to role strain for Hawaiian and Samoan families by analyzing seven focus groups
with Hawaiian and Samoan participants (N = 45). Although findings from prior
acculturation studies with ethnic minorities provide mixed results, the data in
this study demonstrate that forced acculturation into a competitive, individualistic,
and capitalistic culture severely deepens role strain for Hawaiian and Samoan families.
Policy recommendations are made, suggesting that Western institutions in the Pacific
and continental United States acculturate to Pacific Island mores, reversing the
colonial trajectory that has caused frustration among Hawaiian and Samoan families.