Poverty is sustained not only by structural barriers but also by entrenched beliefs. This study evaluates Clear Beliefs trauma-informed coaching for New Jersey WorkFirst Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) clients and staff using a quasi-experimental design with pre/post belief measures and interviews. Coached clients showed sizable reductions in belief-related distress, dysfunctional cognitions, and strong negative emotions, alongside narratives of increased self-efficacy, reframing, and proactive problem solving. Staff reported reduced cynicism and clearer, more supportive roles. Despite attrition and nonrandom assignment, findings provide preliminary evidence that therapeutic coaching can shift maladaptive beliefs and relational climates, warranting rigorous trials with long-term economic outcomes.
AffandiA.PurwaningsihY.HakimL.MulyaningsihT. (2025). Interplay between poverty, poverty eradication and sustainable development: A semi-systematic literature review. Global Transitions, 7(1), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.glt.2024.11.001
2.
Alcañiz-ColomerJ.MoyaM.Valor-SeguraI. (2023). Not all poor are equal: The perpetuation of poverty through blaming those who have been poor all their lives. Current Psychology, 42(1), 26928–26944. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-022-03804-6
3.
BanduraA. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. W. H. Freeman.
4.
BanerjeeA.DufloE.GoldbergN.KarlanD.OseiR.ParientéW.ShapiroJ.ThuysbaertB.UdryC. (2015). A multifaceted programme causes lasting progress for the very poor: Evidence from six countries. Science, 348(6236), 1260799. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1260799
5.
BoyatzisR. E. (2019). Coaching with intentional change theory. In EnglishS.SabatineJ. M.BrownellP. (Eds.), Professional coaching: Principles and practice (pp. 221–230). Springer Publishing Company.
6.
BrideB. E. (2007). Prevalence of secondary traumatic stress among social workers. Social Work, 52(1), 63–70. https://doi.org/10.1093/sw/52.1.63
7.
CannA.CalhounL. G.TedeschiR. G.KilmerR. P.Gil-RivasV.VishnevskyT.DanhauerS. C. (2009). The Core Beliefs Inventory: A brief measure of disruption in the assumptive world. Anxiety, Stress, & Coping, 23(1), 19–34. https://doi.org/10.1080/10615800802573013
8.
CassioL. G.EfremovaG. (2023). Multidimensional coaching for socio-economic advancement of people in poverty: Insights from innovative practices across the world (JRC Science for Policy Report, EUR 31676 EN). Publications Office of the European Union. https://doi.org10.2760/417670
9.
CliftonJ. D. W.BakerJ. D.ParkC. L.YadenD. B.CliftonA. B. W.TerniP.MillerJ. L.ZengG.GiorgiS.SchwartzH. A.SeligmanM. E. P. (2019). Primal world beliefs. Psychological Assessment, 31(1), 82–99. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0000639
10.
CliftonJ. D. W.PerryR. P.ChipperfieldJ. G.RuthigJ. C.LangF. R. (2018). Control beliefs and health in later life: A meta-analysis of longitudinal studies. Health Psychology, 37(6), 491–501. https://doi.org10.1037/hea0000608
11.
CookJ. E.Purdie-VaughnsV.GarciaJ.CohenG. L. (2012). Chronic threat and contingent belonging: Protective benefits of values affirmation on identity development. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 102(3), 479–496. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0026312
12.
DupontC.RoyD. (2024). Emergent poverty traps and inequality at multiple levels impedes social mobility. arXiv. https://doi.org10.48550/arXiv.2412.17822
13.
DweckC. S. (2008). Mindset: The new psychology of success. Ballantine Books.
14.
FigleyC. R. (1995). Compassion fatigue: Coping with secondary traumatic stress disorder in those who treat the traumatized. Brunner/Mazel.
15.
GrantA. M. (2001). Towards a psychology of coaching: The impact of coaching on metacognition, mental health and goal attainment. [Doctoral dissertation. Macquarie University].
16.
GrantA. M. (2003). The impact of life coaching on goal attainment, metacognition and mental health. Social Behavior and Personality, 31(3), 253–264. https://doi.org/10.2224/sbp.2003.31.3.253
17.
GrantA. M.CavanaghM. J. (2004). Toward a profession of coaching: Sixty-five years of progress and challenges for the future. International Journal of Evidence Based Coaching and Mentoring, 2(1), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1177/174183050400200102
18.
GyllenstenK.PalmerS. (2005). Can coaching reduce workplace stress? A quasi-experimental study. International Journal of Evidence Based Coaching and Mentoring, 3(2), 75–85. https://doi.org10.53841/bpstcp.2005.1.1.15, https://doi.org/10.1177/174183050500300207
HomanP.ValentinoL.WeedE. (2017). Being and becoming poor: How cultural schemas shape beliefs about poverty. Social Forces, 95(3), 1023–1048. https://doi.org10.1093/sf/sow074 https://doi.org/10.1093/sf/sox007
21.
HwangS. W.LebowJ. M.BiererM. F.O'ConnellJ. J.OravE. J.BrennanT. A. (1998). Risk factors for death in homeless adults in Boston. Archives of Internal Medicine, 158(13), 1454–1460. https://doi.org/10.1001/archinte.158.13.1454
22.
JacksonS.ParsonsA. A. (2016). Developing principles for therapeutic coaching: A UK perspective. Philosophy of Coaching: An International Journal, 1(1), 80–98. https://doi.org/10.22316/poc/01.1.07
23.
Janoff-BulmanR. (1992). Shattered assumptions: Toward a new psychology of trauma. Free Press.
24.
LoomisJ. M. (2018). Rescaling and reframing poverty: Financial coaching and the pedagogical spaces of financial inclusion in Boston, Massachusetts. Geoforum, 95(1), 143–152. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2018.06.014
25.
LutharS. S.CicchettiD.BeckerB. (2000). The construct of resilience: A critical evaluation and guidelines for future work. Child Development, 71(3), 543–562. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8624.00164
26.
MaslachC.LeiterM. P. (2016). Understanding the burnout experience: Recent research and its implications for psychiatry. World Psychiatry, 15(2), 103–111. https://doi.org/10.1002/wps.20311
27.
McKernanS.-M.RatcliffeC. E. (2006). The effect of specific welfare policies on poverty. Urban Institute, 1(1), 1–51. https://doi.org10.2139/ssrn.2205845
28.
MeierC.MitchellB. (2022). Redlining and neighborhood health. American Journal of Public Health, 112(3), 392–395. https://doi.org10.2105/AJPH.2021.306666
MojtabaiR. (2021). U.S. health care reform and enduring barriers to mental health care among low-income adults with psychological distress. Psychiatric Services, 72(3), 338–342. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.202000194
31.
MorseG.SalyersM. P.RollinsA. L.Monroe-DeVitaM.PfahlerC. (2012). Burnout in mental health services: A review of the problem and its remediation. Administration and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Services Research, 39(5), 341–352. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10488-011-0352-1
32.
MullainathanS.ShafirE. (2013). Scarcity: Why having too little means so much. Times Books.
33.
MurrayS. L.HolmesJ. G.CollinsN. L. (2006). Optimizing assurance: The risk regulation system in relationships. Psychological Bulletin, 132(5), 641–666. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.132.5.641
34.
PajaresF.SchunkD. H. (2002). Self and self-belief in psychology and education: An historical perspective. In AronsonJ. (Ed.), Improving academic achievement: Impact of psychological factors on education (pp. 3–21). Academic Press. https://doi.org10.1016/B978-012064455-1/50004-X
35.
PalmerS.WhybrowA. (Eds). (2007). Handbook of coaching psychology: A guide for practitioners. Routledge.
36.
PassmoreJ.LaiY.-L. (2019). Coaching psychology: Exploring definitions and research contribution to practice. International Coaching Psychology Review, 14(2), 69–90. https://doi.org/10.53841/bpsicpr.2019.14.2.69
37.
PazerS. (2025). Burnout among social workers: The role of structural and psychological factors. International Journal of Arts, Humanities and Social Studies, 7(1), 583–587. https://doi.org/10.33545/26648652.2025.v7.i1h.233
RoyS.CrockerB.NichollsD.McLaineP. (1998). Health status and health care access of homeless women and their children. Health Care for Women International, 19(2), 103–112. https://doi.org10.1080/073993398246328
40.
SantiagoC. D.WadsworthM. E.StumpJ. (2011). Socioeconomic status, neighborhood disadvantage, and poverty-related stress: Prospective effects on psychological syndromes among diverse low-income families. Journal of Economic Psychology, 32(2), 218–230. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joep.2009.10.008
41.
SchramS. F.SossJ.HouserL.FordingR. C. (2010). The third level of US welfare reform: Governmentality under neoliberal paternalism. Citizenship Studies, 14(6), 739–754. https://doi.org10.1080/13621025.2010.522359, https://doi.org/10.1080/13621025.2010.522363
42.
SeligmanM. E. (1975). Helplessness: On depression, development, and death. W. H. Freeman.
43.
SeniorS. L.CaanW.GamsuM. (2019). Welfare and well-being: Towards mental health-promoting welfare systems. Journal of Public Mental Health, 18(3), 139–149. https://doi.org10.1192/bjp.2019.242
44.
SewellW. H.Jr. (1992). A theory of structure: Duality, agency, and transformation. American Journal of Sociology, 98(1), 1–29. https://doi.org/10.1086/229967
45.
StoberD. R.GrantA. M. (Eds). (2006). Evidence-based coaching handbook: Putting best practices to work for your clients. John Wiley & Sons.
46.
TebaldiE.MohanR. (2010). Institutions and poverty. Journal of Development Studies, 46(6), 1047–1066. https://doi.org10.1080/00220380903198303 https://doi.org/10.1080/00220380903012730
47.
TurnbullJ.PodymowT. (2002). The health consequences of poverty in Canada. Canadian Journal of Public Health, 93(6), 405–406. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03405025
48.
van BredaA. D. (2018). A critical review of resilience theory and its relevance for social work. Social Work/Maatskaplike Werk, 54(1), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.15270/54-1-611
