Antipoverty Groups Develop ‘Incentive’ Programs
July 13, 2006 | Read Time: 1 minute
A growing number of U.S. antipoverty groups are using so-called incentive-based programs to motivate the poor to improve their lives, reports The Wall Street Journal.
For example, Pathways to Rewards, a program run by Project Match, in Chicago, and supported by the Searle Funds at the Chicago Community Trust and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, awards points to people for paying their rent, getting their children to school, and seeking employment. The participants use the points to buy prizes, such as DVD players and video games.
Some social workers, however, said such programs are paying people to do things they ought to be doing anyway. (A paid subscription is required to view this article.)
