TANF workers' responses to battered women and the impact of brief worker training: what survivors report.

Battered women (n = 159) report on their experiences with their Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) case workers. Workers most often ask about physical harm, feelings of fear, and police involvement. They least often create a safety plan, give information about work exemptions, and ask whether the partner had a gun. Women's major reasons for not talking about abuse are that the worker did not ask and a fear of negative outcomes. Workers who attended 1-day training are more likely than untrained workers to discuss the women's fear and physical harm, to help develop a safety plan, and to be viewed as generally helpful.