Mental health treatment and work among African American and Caribbean Black welfare recipients.

OBJECTIVE: Untreated depression among Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) participants greatly reduces chances of securing and holding gainful employment.

METHOD: Logistic regression models were estimated on data describing 1,000 African American and Caribbean Black TANF recipients and 2,123 African American and Caribbean Black non-TANF recipients obtained from the National Survey of American Life (NSAL).

RESULTS: Black TANF participants were more likely than Black non-TANF participants to be depressed and treated. Treatment odds were lower for Caribbean Black than for U.S.-born Black TANF participants.

CONCLUSION: Results indicated that mental health treatment was likely among Black TANF participants if depression was identified. TANF participants working less than full-time did not receive as much treatment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).