https://mathematica.org/our-focus-areas/human-services/family-supportMathematica uses data science, social science, and technology to help people, communities, and organizations around the world improve public well-being.enMathematica Policy Research. All rights reserved. 2014https://mathematica.org/-/media/internet/logo.png?h=68&w=208https://mathematica.org/our-focus-areas/human-services/family-support60{B07A0496-9786-44B6-8954-89CBDC54861A}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/parent-experiences-in-the-regional-partnership-grants-program-findings-from-an-exploratory-studyThis brief summarizes findings from an exploratory study with parents enrolled in services provided by two Regional Partnership Grants (RPG) projects. The study examines the factors that led to parents’ substance use issues and child welfare involvement and their experiences with RPG services.Sun, 01 Feb 2026 16:31:00 Z{653E657D-32EE-46CD-9F2B-D27AB70FCA4A}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/regional-partnership-grants-cross-site-evaluation-annual-report-october-2024-september-2025The annual report describes the major activities and accomplishments from October 2024 through September 2025 for Mathematica’s contract to conduct the cross-site evaluation and provide technical assistance (TA) for the seventh cohort of the Regional Partnership Grants (RPG).Fri, 30 Jan 2026 21:27:00 Z{F61F79A5-283D-4FC4-96CA-EB483892B652}https://www.mathematica.org/en/news/zachary-parolin-wins-the-25th-david-kershaw-award-and-prizeZachary Parolin of Oxford University has received the David N. Kershaw Award for his research on poverty and opportunity and will deliver the Kershaw Lecture at APPAM’s 2025 Fall Conference.Wed, 01 Oct 2025 20:16:00 Z{6DC5C01A-D47D-466E-B7AB-2FA3FDCC3681}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/family-engagement-toolkitA set of resources to help home visiting programs reach more communities by strengthening their outreach, recruitment, and retention efforts. Mon, 22 Sep 2025 13:24:20 Z{53F5C03A-3EB3-4CD4-8B43-071B25826079}https://www.mathematica.org/en/news/new-acf-toolkit-builds-evidence-to-strengthen-healthy-marriage-and-relationship-education-programsACF and Mathematica have released a new toolkit that elevates local evaluations across the healthy marriage and relationship education program portfolio and supports a unified body of evidence to inform future program design and support improved outcomes. Thu, 07 Aug 2025 00:00:00 Z{9D5E8B27-8385-45AD-9B2C-A55E913DA9EE}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/strategies-to-improve-youth-and-young-adult-study-enrollmentThis brief describes enrollment challenges for the Youth At-Risk of Homelessness (YARH) summative evaluation and highlights the strategies used to improve study enrollment. Wed, 06 Aug 2025 17:07:00 Z{F499E240-135A-4566-AF3F-ED4AB9023E6C}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/regional-partnership-grants-cross-site-evaluation-annual-report-october-2023-september-2024The annual report describes the major activities and accomplishments from October 2023 through September 2024 for Mathematica’s contract to conduct the cross-site evaluation and provide technical assistance (TA) for the sixth and seventh cohorts of the Regional Partnership Grants (RPG).Wed, 21 May 2025 15:47:24 Z{0C65F951-C4BC-4919-AB81-A4F29D0B3C88}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/navigating-genai-in-child-welfare-quick-start-guide-for-agency-leadersGenerative AI offers child welfare agencies tools to enhance case management, predict outcomes, and allocate resources more effectively. This tip sheet equips leaders with strategies for responsibly implementing AI while prioritizing well-being and safety.Fri, 18 Apr 2025 15:16:00 Z{9B52B1DC-E251-4903-B7C7-686D082A47AB}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/regional-partnership-grants-to-increase-the-well-being-of-children-affected-by-substance-abuseThe Report to Congress discusses three cohorts of RPG projects. It shares the final findings for the fourth cohort, including characteristics of enrolled families, services received, and changes in outcomes over time. The report also includes interim information for the fifth and sixth cohorts.Tue, 07 Jan 2025 13:24:00 Z{09309F99-F106-44A8-BC24-19E284719A12}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/building-skills-and-peer-connections-to-improve-mothers-mental-wellnessThis report shares findings from a descriptive and cost study of Western Mass Mental Health Outreach for MotherS PartnershipSM (Western Mass MOMS). It explores the design, implementation, and cost, based on the MOMS Partnership model to improve the emotional well-being of mothers and help them reach education and employment goals. Tue, 17 Dec 2024 18:06:00 Z{7C4BDDA6-2026-49DD-A7CA-4581157D8EE5}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/innovative-988-crisis-service-systems-for-children-youth-and-people-with-disabilitiesThis brief describes innovative state approaches to providing crisis, stabilization, and recovery-oriented supports and services for children, youth, and people with disabilities through the integration and partnership of crisis services systems with other service systems. The brief describes partnerships and strategies of five states (Connecticut, Georgia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Virginia) that have focused on developing crisis services for these populations.Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:37:00 Z{E3DC9684-66E1-4BD7-A249-0E58E48E6FA7}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/next-generation-of-enhanced-employment-strategies-project-evaluation-design-reportThis report describes the designs of the descriptive, cost, and impact studies of the four programs included in the NextGen Project. It describes how programs were identified and selected, and the research questions, the study design, the data collection strategy, and the analytic approach for each.Wed, 06 Nov 2024 19:17:00 Z{7514B2B7-1B6D-4E9F-8412-150AC9384BCC}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/regional-partnership-grants-cross-site-evaluation-design-report-for-seventh-cohortThis report describes the cross-site evaluation design for the seventh cohort of RPG projects (RPG7). It presents an overview of the design for the RPG7 cross-site evaluation, including a conceptual framework to guide the evaluation, research questions, data sources, and data collection methods.Tue, 01 Oct 2024 16:50:00 Z{0BB5A4A4-9A13-4453-A82B-29710A08F6EF}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/coordinating-integrated-prevention-approaches-to-serve-the-whole-personThis brief highlights efforts made by nine integrated human services initiatives to center families’ strengths and needs and coordinate access to resources and services to prevent child welfare involvement and/or homelessness and increase the use of economic supports.Tue, 01 Oct 2024 15:26:00 Z{1126702E-8065-4C32-833B-5CD0459BE25D}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/factors-that-impact-the-child-support-programs-role-in-reducing-child-poverty-convening-summaryThis brief summarizes an expert convening focused on the child support program’s current ability and future potential to address child poverty. Thu, 26 Sep 2024 18:04:00 Z{89978676-ADEC-4BA7-AECA-DB6377F91DA9}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/the-creative-and-collaborative-progression-of-yarhAs a multiphase program with each phase building on the previous one, YARH required collaboration, creativity, and transparency among federal funders, grantees, local evaluators, the cross-site evaluation technical assistance team, and youth and young adults with child welfare experience. Fri, 06 Sep 2024 17:31:00 Z{4FA5AD13-269D-48F9-A8F2-D08A9E03D76E}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/building-evidence-for-a-new-intervention-or-program-takes-timeThis brief uses the term evidence broadly and focuses on various types of evidence that, over time, can contribute to a solid understanding of a new program or intervention. Fri, 06 Sep 2024 00:00:00 Z{8C69E99B-F61A-4E75-88B3-2D31F1CDE6E7}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/designing-an-implementation-evaluation-a-guide-for-regional-partnership-grant-recipientsThe evaluation technical assistance brief provides a step-by-step guide for how Regional Partnership Grant (RPG) projects might plan for an implementation evaluation.Tue, 27 Aug 2024 20:49:19 Z{294F863B-D730-44EB-9FB6-46E1A3245256}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/listed-home-based-child-care-provider-policies-series-brief-1This research brief is part of the Home-Based Child Care Supply and Quality (HBCCSQ) project and examines HBCC providers’ subsidy funding receipt, preferences, and payment arrangements. It is part of a series presenting a national analysis of listed HBCC providers’ public policy interactions. Mon, 26 Aug 2024 21:36:00 Z{73DE7A98-B46B-496F-ABD5-0CA9011CE7F2}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/listed-home-based-child-care-provider-policies-series-brief-2This research brief is part of the Home-Based Child Care Supply and Quality (HBCCSQ) project and examines HBCC providers’ interactions with, perceptions of, and responses to regulations. It is part of a series presenting a national analysis of listed HBCC providers’ public policy interactions. Mon, 26 Aug 2024 21:21:00 Z{DCC750D2-EAEA-437E-A76F-72E983ECAE13}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/listed-home-based-child-care-provider-policies-series-brief-3This research brief is part of the Home-Based Child Care Supply and Quality (HBCCSQ) project and examines HBCC providers’ participation and progress in quality rating and improvement systems. It is part of a series presenting a national analysis of listed HBCC providers’ public policy interactions. Mon, 26 Aug 2024 15:41:00 Z{9724B0FD-DAF6-4482-9C16-9C555F2A53C3}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/youth-at-risk-of-homelessness-summative-evaluation-infographicsThese infographics provide overviews of both the data sources used in the YARH-3 summative evaluation impact and implementation studies, and the Pathways and comparison programs involved in the summative evaluation. Fri, 16 Aug 2024 17:49:00 Z{3B8D0021-2153-42D4-A68C-FF7616931CB9}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/building-successful-data-linking-teams-for-child-welfare-and-medicaid-agenciesLinking data across public systems can help improve care coordination efforts, advance research regarding populations engaged with multiple public services, and assist program integrity activities focused on those systems. The Child Welfare Health Infrastructure for Linking and Data Analysis of Resources, Effectiveness, and Needs (CHILDREN) Initiative is a five-year project funded by the Health Care Fraud and Abuse Program, run by the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) and implemented by Mathematica.Thu, 15 Aug 2024 13:24:00 Z{26A6834B-59C2-4DBE-938A-4C807F26E036}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/integrating-services-to-strengthen-children-youth-and-familiesThis 1-page brief explores four key themes for successful service integration to prevent child welfare system involvement, drawing from findings across nine sites that participated in the ASPE-sponsored ‘Case Studies in Supporting Prevention through Program Integration’ project.Tue, 30 Jul 2024 15:05:00 Z{4DDC2E7B-8E29-414B-84EA-010B7FCE4A75}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/advancing-family-economic-mobility-in-mississippi-through-a-peer-to-peer-statewide-learningMathematica conducted a process evaluation of a Mississippi statewide learning community from May 2022 to December 2023. This brief describes the activities of the learning community and includes takeaways related to how facilitators planned and facilitated meetings, meeting attendance, how sharing and learning occurred, what participants learned and collaboration examples, and progress the group made towards its goals.Fri, 28 Jun 2024 14:04:22 Z{8FEB590F-0C25-4A96-807D-745DB89DF00B}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/advancing-family-economic-mobility-in-new-england-a-regional-learning-community-on-parent-engagementMathematica conducted a process evaluation of a New England regional learning community from December 2021 to December 2023. This brief describes the activities of the learning community and includes takeaways related to how facilitators’ planned and facilitated meetings, meeting attendance, how sharing and learning occurred, what participants learned and collaboration examples, and changes participants made to their agency or states’ practices, policies, and programs.Fri, 28 Jun 2024 12:23:59 Z{B2B2FA25-1706-480D-9210-8E76A20F38B2}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/evaluation-of-child-support-enforcement-cooperation-requirements-in-snapThis congressionally mandated report presents the most comprehensive picture to date about the implementation and effects of the cooperation requirements in SNAP, and how this policy requirement is experienced and perceived by families with low incomes.Thu, 06 Jun 2024 19:49:55 Z{C6ACBBAC-4F82-4F15-87EC-6E76CBB72172}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/design-and-analysis-plan-for-the-impact-study-of-work-successThis report describes the design and analysis plans for the evaluation of Work Success. It discusses why Work Success is expected to affect employment and economic security, the process for conducting random assignment, and data sources. It describes the analytic approach to estimating impacts.Wed, 06 Mar 2024 19:58:00 Z{F0DBACE7-38B7-4F29-A548-96F75F5FFE72}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/modifying-the-dialectical-behavior-therapy-mindfulness-curriculumThis brief describes the process of modifying the mindfulness curriculum that is part of each dialectical behavior therapy module within the Youth Transitions Partnership for transition-age youth and young adults who are in foster care in Alameda County, California.Thu, 08 Feb 2024 17:35:43 Z{247A6A56-FA09-485B-BE2D-CA2EB0563756}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/project-improve-one-pagerThis one-page document shares information about Project IMPROVE and how state and local TANF agencies can get involved.Mon, 08 Jan 2024 18:36:00 Z{4917643D-002E-4F5D-BD18-D540C75297A0}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/business-process-managementHuman services programs can improve staff and participant experiences by using strategies from business process management (BPM). This brief, created for OFA’s Project IMPROVE, shares examples of human services programs that have applied BPM strategies and outlines how programs can do similar work.Wed, 13 Dec 2023 15:53:00 Z{9B5B8015-1399-48F4-A8F1-226C9E284C5F}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/healthier-mothers-babies-ca-start-safety-strategies-address-prevent-intimate-partner-violenceThis policy brief highlights evidence-informed strategies and opportunities to integrate intimate partner violence (IPV) prevention services into maternal health care and capitalize on the opportunities presented by recent maternal health initiatives in California.Fri, 01 Dec 2023 13:07:00 Z{EB676815-B980-4978-A6A0-81978FC76905}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/employment-coaching-programs-short-term-impacts-briefsThese four program impact briefs present short-term impact findings for each of the four employment coaching programs participating in an experimental study conducted as part of the Evaluation of Employment Coaching for TANF and Related Populations.Tue, 21 Nov 2023 13:46:00 Z{7D6380DE-98F9-4415-A88D-F5FE60092E65}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/tips-for-incorporating-peer-based-strategies-in-sexual-risk-avoidance-education-srae-programsThe purpose of this tip sheet is to provide tips for SRAE and similar programs that seek to design and implement peer-based strategies. Tue, 31 Oct 2023 13:21:00 Z{02EF5183-10A2-4BAF-B6FE-B73A8F46F34D}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/youth-at-risk-of-homelessness-an-early-picture-of-youth-and-services-descriptive-reportThis report describes services offered to youth and young adults with foster care histories through Colorado’s Pathways to Success comprehensive service model and comparison programs. It also describes characteristics of service providers and of the youth and young adults enrolled in the services.Fri, 29 Sep 2023 18:21:00 Z{52858778-C7FD-4268-AE83-A682A848E820}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/serving-young-fathers-in-responsible-fatherhood-programsThis white paper explores common challenges that Responsible Fatherhood (RF) programs face in recruiting and engaging young fathers in their services. It also offers strategies that programs can use to help overcome these challenges.Fri, 29 Sep 2023 13:12:00 Z{8AF915AF-07AF-4047-815E-F42F5661E9FC}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/figuring-it-out-serving-young-fathers-in-responsible-fatherhood-programsThis brief summarizes common challenges Responsible Fatherhood programs face in recruiting and engaging young fathers (that is, younger than 30) in their services. It also highlights potential strategies that programs can use to overcome these challenges. Fri, 29 Sep 2023 13:02:00 Z{9662D555-3B48-4583-BE65-EE4DBAC3F15D}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/child-support-learning-agenda-a-brief-synthesis-of-select-child-support-literatureThe purpose of this brief is to summarize the findings from select child support literature identified by OPRE and OCSS and highlight remaining knowledge gaps. Fri, 29 Sep 2023 12:14:00 Z{5FF9DB5D-3918-4D83-860D-4BC87BA5A616}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/predicting-participation-in-healthy-marriage-and-responsible-fatherhood-programsThis research-to-practice brief describes findings from the special topic report (STR) about what workshop- and participant-level factors might predict greater participation in healthy marriage and responsible fatherhood (HMRF) primary workshops.Fri, 21 Jul 2023 12:15:00 Z{43C39608-8AF0-4835-B4F8-8290F8976311}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/can-a-participant-centered-approach-to-setting-and-pursuing-goals-help-adults-with-low-incomesThis report presents short-term impact findings from an experimental study of four employment coaching programs conducted as part of the Evaluation of Employment Coaching for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Related Populations study. Fri, 30 Jun 2023 20:08:00 Z{21EF0762-3D41-4D8C-887C-16975028FC2F}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/using-rapid-cycle-learning-to-build-momentum-for-change-in-two-generation-service-deliveryThis brief describes how practitioners of two-generation initiatives can use a structured rapid cycle learning process to implement, test, and refine strategies to intentionally align services for caregivers and their children.Fri, 30 Jun 2023 14:20:00 Z{C7C1D25D-43BF-4991-BF95-228DDDFC7EBD}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/iterating-to-improve-lessons-from-rapid-cycle-learning-with-healthy-marriage-and-relationshipThe essay aims to help other human services providers understand and use rapid cycle learning techniques to address their key challenges. It shares grant recipients’ perspectives and advice for conducting rapid cycle learning, based on their experiences in SIMR. Tue, 20 Jun 2023 11:48:00 Z{54E4C7A8-A924-4A79-A1BB-066841A6A3DA}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/promising-strategies-for-collecting-analyzing-and-reporting-data-on-father-and-paternal-relativeThis brief highlights examples of short-term strategies sites implemented to collect, analyze, and report data outside their own data systems.Thu, 15 Jun 2023 12:43:00 Z{D45246A1-6BEE-4198-AF2F-32F4496970FD}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/a-national-portrait-of-unlisted-home-based-child-care-providers-brief-4This analysis brief is part of the Home-Based Child Care Supply and Quality (HBCCSQ) project and examines the characteristics of communities in which HBCC providers live. The brief is one in a series that presents a national portrait of unlisted HBCC providers.Wed, 31 May 2023 18:00:00 Z{C2F9973F-DCB0-46EE-AA60-2AED359C2ED7}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/youth-at-risk-of-homelessness-foundational-analytic-plan-for-the-summative-evaluation-of-pathwaysThis analytic plan serves as the foundation for a summative evaluation of the Colorado Pathways to Success comprehensive service model that Mathematica and ACF are conducting as part of YARH-3 in partnership with the Colorado Department of Human Services and the Center for Policy Research. Fri, 28 Apr 2023 11:26:00 Z{7C8CBBB0-7F80-457E-8F0C-1794FCBC2317}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/innovation-and-support-for-assessing-summative-evaluation-readiness-lessons-learnedThis brief presents the approach YARH used to identify the YARH grantee who is the summative evaluation partner.Fri, 28 Apr 2023 00:00:00 Z{81F319AA-D319-49B6-BB8B-776330D5F18D}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/promoting-healthy-futures-for-youth-tips-for-using-the-sexual-risk-avoidance-education-srae-programSexual risk avoidance education (SRAE) is a primary prevention approach that promotes the development of life skills related to healthy relationships, decision making, goal setting, and self-regulation, as well as the benefits of avoiding non-marital sexual activity and other risky behaviors.Tue, 25 Apr 2023 11:27:00 Z{5033CA3B-528E-43A9-8728-56FBCE2994AD}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/regional-partnership-grants-cross-site-evaluation-annual-report-for-oct-2021-through-sep-2022The annual report describes the major activities and accomplishments from October 2021 through September 2022 for Mathematica’s contract to conduct the cross-site evaluation and provide technical assistance for the fourth, fifth, and sixth cohorts of the Regional Partnership Grants (RPG).Tue, 18 Apr 2023 18:24:46 Z{FAD3573A-4792-4FE8-9A7B-D08F5FD630C5}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/adopting-motivation-driven-approach-to-case-management-in-hmre-servicesIn the SIMR project, two HMRE grant recipients implemented an approach to case management that prioritizes participant goal setting and attainment. This brief shares tips for HMRE service providers to support strong implementation of motivation-driven case management.Fri, 31 Mar 2023 14:48:00 Z{334657B2-B9F2-41AC-97C2-1A1B5D5DF9EC}https://www.mathematica.org/en/publications/road-maps-for-change-youth-serving-hmre-grant-recipients-rapid-cycle-learning-in-the-simr-projectThis brief summarizes lessons and insights from the SIMR project, focusing on the five youth-serving HMRE grant recipients that participated in SIMR. OPRE in ACF, with funding from OFA, contracted with Mathematica and its partner, Public Strategies, to conduct the SIMR project.Fri, 31 Mar 2023 14:32:00 Z