Human capital, physical health, and mental health of welfare recipients: Co-occurrence and correlates

lDrawing on a large random sample of welfare recipients in the post-welfare reform era, this article examines the prevalence of mental health disorder s, substance dependence, and physical health or disability, their co-occurr ence with human capital problems, and their relation to employment Half of the participants have none of these potential barriers to employment. Menta l health and human capital problems, when present tend to occur in isolatio n about half the time. Women with co-occurring human-capital, mental-health , and physical-health problems have the poorest work outcomes. The findings suggest the need to design and implement more assessment, referrals, and s ervice provision to support women in meeting the challenges in the transiti on from welfare to work.