Evaluating Client Outcomes from the Financial Stability Pathway: A Community Intervention Study to Improve the Financial Capability of Individuals Living within a Large City
As financial problems among low- to moderate-income individuals and families within and around cities like Baltimore become more complex, research evaluating financial services and products used by these individuals and families is critical to determine which programs actually work and which programs are in need of revision. An innovative pilot project, the Financial Stability Pathway (FSP), was launched in 2012 by the Maryland CASH Campaign. Maryland CASH partnered with the University of Maryland, School of Social Work to study FSP client outcomes including financial knowledge, attitudes and behaviors associated with indicators of greater economic stability.
Methods:
Maryland CASH designed a community-based network, training program, and online assessment and referral tool to help social workers and other human service providers in Baltimore City to work more effectively with low-income individuals and families seeking assistance for multiple financial problems using trained professionals for assessment and referral to strong financial programs and services. Core services promoted through the network included free tax preparation, financial education, financial coaching, certified credit counseling and budget counseling, benefit screening, and access to financial products. Using a two-group, quasi-experimental study, the researchers assessed outcomes listed above over time and used repeated measures ANOVA to test significant changes over time (pre-test, 3-month post-test, and 9-month follow-up; overall response rate = 28%).
Results:
Overall, clients improved in areas related to financial knowledge, attitudes and behaviors, and on some outcomes suggestive of future financial stability. All results reported here were statistically significant (p<.05). Specifically, all clients in the study, regardless of group, improved on measures of personal financial well-being, satisfaction with financial situation, financial management behaviors, and ability to identify at least one source of emergency funding. Clients enrolled it the FSP program, as compared to non-FSP clients, reported higher confidence ratings in their ability to improve their credit scores over time, were more likely to use free tax preparation services, and were more likely to have viewed their credit report and score within the past six months. When specific referral services were examined, clients in both groups who used credit counseling were more likely to report having access to a savings or checking account and reported higher scores on the cash management scale over time.
Conclusions and Implications:
This study provides promising results supporting the notion that with proper training and development and support of an ongoing quality provider network, offering easy and free access to solid financial services within the community, front-line social workers can make a difference in the financial stability of individuals and families. Specifically, social workers can be trained to work with clients confronted by complex financial problems to accurately assess their current situation, work collaboratively to develop short-term and long-term financial goals and provide smart referrals to community resources, thereby increasing options available to clients which in theory is related to improving their sense of financial empowerment and overall quality of life.