Developing a profile for identifying potential long-term welfare recipients in Utah: The changing face of welfare---from welfare to farewell

American social welfare policy is derived from a unique combination of democratic, capitalistic and religious values. These forces are evident in welfare reform policies including the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) of 1996 and the more recent Deficit Reduction Act (DRA) of 2005. Both policies look to individuals verses social structures as the locus for needed change. "Success" in the present policy environment is defined by quick exits from the welfare system (at least the cash assistance portion) accompanied by movement into employment or marriage.; In this exploratory, mixed methods study the personal characteristics, background experiences and attitudes of welfare recipients were examined to develop a profile for predicting long-term receipt of welfare benefits (defined as cash assistance) verses exiting Utah's cash assistance program due to earned income. The 1144 study participants had received between 2 and 9 months of cash assistance under the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) program, were randomly selected from Utah's Family Employment Program (FEP) caseload, and were interviewed in-person.; Logistic regression analysis showed that most characteristics (such as low levels of education, a weak work history, growing up in welfare and welfare attitudes) historically associated with long-term welfare receipt during the Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) and early TANF eras are no longer predictive of longer welfare stays. Such characteristics were most prevalent in those leaving welfare due to sanctioning and other problem situations. Longer stays on welfare were only associated with factors explicitly allowed for under DRA policy including verifiable physical and/or mental health issues and engaging in an approved educational program.; Study findings suggest that the core American values which shaped the welfare reform of the 1990s are being fully experienced by the welfare population. Welfare is no longer about poverty reduction but about employment. Measures of deservingness have been reincorporated into federal welfare policy with associated judgements based on social moral standards. The social work profession would do well to understand the outcomes of this major policy shift on the many clients served through a multitude of agencies impacted by these changes.