Using nationally representative data on a recent birth cohort of U.S.-born children in low-income households (n = 2,800-3,700), this study investigates associations between the timing and intensity of early childhood food insecurity and children's kindergarten reading, math, and social-emotional outcomes. Descriptive patterns reveal that approximately 20% of low-income 0- to 5-year-old children reside in food-insecure households. Food insecurity experienced during early childhood is unfavorably associated with social-emotional outcomes in kindergarten, controlling for household income and prior assessments of child social-emotional skills. Results are less consistent for cognitive outcomes but similar in magnitude. If replicated, findings may inform policy efforts to reduce disparities in early skills for approximately 15 million U.S. children in food-insecure households.
We identify several critical groups for health professionals to address: early adolescent females not previously identified as more engaged in health risks; adolescent females "catching up" to male health risks; early and mid-adolescent males shifting into adult patterns of heightened health risk behaviors; and the group of risk-taking males across age groups.
Numerous studies show large differences between economically advantaged and disadvantaged parents in the quality and quantity of their engagement in young children's development. This "parenting gap" may account for a substantial portion of the gap in children's early cognitive skills. However, researchers know little about whether the socioeconomic gap in parenting has increased over time. The present study investigates this question, focusing on income-and education-based gaps in parents' engagement in cognitively stimulating activities with preschool-aged children. We draw on data from four national studies conducted over 25 years. We found a decrease in income-based gaps in children's book ownership and library attendance but increasing income-based gaps for several other parent behaviors, including reading and telling stories to children and teaching children letters, words, and numbers. Income-based gaps in children's participation in out-of-home cultural activities also increased. Results for education-based gaps were similar. These gaps largely arose from top-income families pulling away from their middle-and low-income counterparts.
This study investigated conditions under which family structure matters most for child well-being. Using data from the Children of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (n = 3,936), a national sample of U.S. families, it was estimated how changes in family structure related to changes in children's behavior between age 3 and 12 separately by household income level to determine whether associations depended on families' resources. Early changes in family structure, particularly from a two-biological-parent to single-parent family, predicted increases in behavior problems more than later changes, and movements into single and stepparent families mattered more for children of higher versus lower income parents. Results suggest that for children of higher income parents, moving into a stepfamily may improve, not undermine, behavior.
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