The impact of e-government on child support enforcement policy outcomes

ABSTRACT

This study explores the effect of E-government application, the Automated Information Systems (AIS), of child support enforcement on child support collection outcomes. Using Current Population Survey (CPS) data from 2000 to 2005, I employ Heckman's two step method to deal with selection bias. The result in the first step shows a positive association between AIS and the probability of single mothers receiving child support from delinquent fathers. In the second step, AIS is statistically significant, indicating that among single mothers who received support, those living in a state that adopted AIS received $192 more per year, on average, than single mothers living in a state without AIS, holding other factors being constant.

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INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  H. Information Systems
  H.4 INFORMATION SYSTEMS APPLICATIONS
      H.4.2 Types of Systems

General Terms:
Management, Measurement, Performance

Keywords:
automated information system, child support enforcement, e-government, policy outcome measurement