Welfare participation and self-esteem in later life.
The purpose of this panel study is to see whether enrolling in a public assistance program is related to changes in self-esteem in later life. A theoretical framework is developed that specifies that older men will be more likely to experience a decline in self-esteem following enrollment in a welfare program. Data from a nationwide longitudinal survey reveal that while receiving welfare benefits is unrelated to self-esteem for all elders taken together, older men experience a substantial decline in their sense of self-worth. In contrast, significant effects fail to emerge among elderly women.
Krause
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Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, University of Michigan, School of Public Health, Ann Arbor 48109-2029, USA.
D000368:Aged / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008960:Models, Psychological; D012649:Self Concept; D012737:Sex Factors; D012946:Social Welfare / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States