Full report. - Social Research and Demonstration Corp
Full report. - Social Research and Demonstration Corp
Full report. - Social Research and Demonstration Corp
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learn$ave Project: Final Reportchapter in Table 5.4. The evidence suggests a typology offive different low-income IDA users. These may or maynot be consistent outside of the learn$ave context butwe have, as yet, no available data to verify this. Futureresearch on low-income savers, both in IDAs <strong>and</strong> inrelated account-based mechanisms, may confirm ourproposed typology above.Some observations are worth making before turningto the next section of this chapter: First, while the overalluse of matched credits among participants was high as anaggregate (about two-thirds used credits at least once), itwas almost certainly pulled upwards by a small group ofparticipants who saved the most, earned the most credits<strong>and</strong> cashed out the most credits during the project.However, using the aggregate measure alone concealsthe non-negligible number of participants who earnedmatched credits but then ab<strong>and</strong>oned at least some ofthe credits to which they were entitled. A non-negligibleproportion of participants who had accumulated matchedcredits did not use even $1 in matched credits whenthe time came to cash out — 32.9 per cent of allparticipants did not use any credits. Certainly, this riskfell as participant savings rose, consistent with the ideaof stakeholding that is a key part of the asset-buildingmodel that informed learn$ave. However, the combinedtrends of less than full use <strong>and</strong> also zero use of earnedcredits <strong>and</strong> the pattern of using no credits at all suggeststhat some learn$ave participants may have faced certainbarriers during the part of the program period (month12 to month 48) when they were expected to investtheir savings in eligible project goals. While motivation<strong>and</strong> then current circumstances may have supportedthe idea of saving <strong>and</strong> investing in adult learning whenparticipants enrolled in learn$ave, changes in employment,health, family, income or other conditions may haveforced a re-evaluation of the learn$ave goals.The role of ancillary services: Experimental resultsDuring the saving period (months 0–36) participants inthe learn$ave-plus group were expected to take part in15 hours of financial management training (FMT) <strong>and</strong>participants in this group had access to case managementservices through to the end of the cash-out or investmentperiod (up to month 48). Some case management wasalso made available to learn$ave-only participants, includingaccount <strong>and</strong> project information, updates, reminders<strong>and</strong> help with the cash-out process. However, learn$aveplusparticipants were offered a more intensive level ofcase management services including referrals to othercommunity programs <strong>and</strong> services <strong>and</strong> a more proactiveapproach to providing account <strong>and</strong> project updates<strong>and</strong> reminders. The design of learn$ave suggested thatparticipants in the learn$ave-plus group who received theAverage Proportion of Credits UsedProportion Not Using Any CreditsFigure 5.10 Matched Credits Used <strong>and</strong> Unused, by Peak SavingsAmount, Program Group Participants100%80%60%40%20%0%100%80%60%40%20%0%Source:Note:(a) Average Proportion of Matched Credits Used,by Peak Savings1$120 to$999.99$1,000 to$1,483.33Maximum*after month 18Maximum*before month 18(b) Proportion of Eligible Participants who Did NotUse Any Matched Credits, by Peak Savings1$120 to$999.991Strugglingsavers22$1,000 to$1,483.332Moderatesavers3Determindedsavers4EarlysaversParticipant Management Information System.Sample size: 2,388 program group participants.* Savings of more than $1,483.33 were considered asthe maximum.33Maximum*after month 1844Maximum*before month 18Figure 5.1<strong>Social</strong> <strong>Research</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Demonstration</strong> <strong>Corp</strong>oration Chapter 5 | 59