Separating policy hopes from policy realities: An examination of the inner workings of welfare -to -work training programs and their impact on recipients' employment outcomes

Using ethnographic methodology, this dissertation engages in a multi-level sociological analysis of the inner working of two private welfare-to-work training programs (for-profit and nonprofit) in a large northeastern city. The analysis focuses on the linkages among exogenous factors (e.g., performance contracts and profit-motivations), organizational dynamics, management decisions and recipients' employment outcomes. Results from the study show that these factors affect how job-training resources are allocated, impacting the ability of workers to help clients succeed and thus altering recipients' employment outcomes. Findings highlight the political and social implications for government and job-training programs that implement welfare policies.