WELFARE USE ACROSS GENERATIONS - HOW IMPORTANT ARE THE TIES THAT BIND

In this study we utilize a large, nationally representative data set o f American households (n = 13,017) to examine the extent of intergener ational welfare use, the strength of the association across generation s, and the reasons underlying such a dynamic. Our analysis reveals tha t three-quarters of welfare recipients do nor grow up in households th at received welfare. Nevertheless, if a child did grow up in such a fa mily, they are more likely to receive welfare when they-become an adul t. Results show that this connection occurs because those who were rai sed in a household relying on welfare are more likely to have grown up in a poor or lower income family. This, in turn, negatively impacts u pon an adult child's development of human capital and household charac teristics, which in turn places the individual at a greater risk of ne eding aid from public assistance programs. Consequently, it is the par ents' economic background, rather than their use of welfare per se, th at explains the dynamic of intergenerational welfare use.