Effects and Implications of the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 on Social Service Organizations

Abstract

This inquiry illustrates the effects of a piece of legislation, the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, on social service organization providing welfare to low-income individuals in the United States. The theory is based on a model by Rainey and Steinbauer (1999) that links the inputs of stakeholders and resources to task design and, eventually, organizational effectiveness. When the legislation was enacted, the size of the stakeholder group was enlarged without the immediate provision of additional resources to the social service organization. As a result, the organizations reacted by altering three variables in their task design: client service provision, operational norms, and mission and scope.