The percentage of children living in families with incomes below the poverty line has increased from 16.2 percent in 2000 to 18.0 percent in 2007. 3 Thus, a large number of children-nearly one in five-are poor. a Child poverty merits attention because a substantial body of research links poverty with lower levels of child well-being. For a variety of reasons, when compared with children from more affluent families, poor children are more likely to have low academic achievement, to drop out of school, and to have health, behavioral, and emotional problems. These linkages are particularly strong for children whose families experience deep poverty, who are poor during early childhood, and who are trapped in poverty for a long time. This Research Brief draws on Census data for 2007 to present a statistical portrait of children in poverty in the United States, 4 updating similar briefs Child Trends produced in 1999 and 2002. The brief highlights research on the consequences of poverty for children and suggests program and policy approaches that hold promise for decreasing poverty among low-income children and their families. TRENDS The overall child poverty rate rose significantly. • For children younger than 18, the poverty rate increased from 17.4 percent in 2006 to 18 percent in 2007, the highest rate since 1998. This 18 percent translates into 13.3 million children living in poverty in the United States in 2007, 5 an increase of 497,000 children between 2006 and 2007. 6 The percentage of children living in deep poverty had been declining at the turn of the century but is now on the rise. b • In 2007, 8 percent of children lived in deep or extreme poverty (below 50 percent of the poverty line). 7 The percentage of children living in extreme poverty was 9 percent in 1995 and had decreased to 7 percent by 2000. Since 2003, it has been 8 percent. 8 • Analyses suggest that children experiencing extreme poverty may be even worse off than their counterparts were in the mid-1990s because their families have become less likely to use the social programs for which they are eligible (such as food stamps and Medicaid). 9 a This brief reports on the U.S. official poverty line, which is the measure used in most research studies. Considerable discussion focuses on an improved measure of poverty, recommended a decade ago by the National Research Council. 10 b The 2007 Health and Human Services poverty guidelines list the poverty level at an annual income of $13,690 for a two-person household, $17,170 for a three-person household, and $34,570 for an eight-person household. The poverty line is drawn at slightly higher income levels for residents of Alaska and Hawaii. Child Trends is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research center that studies children at all stages of development. Our mission is to improve outcomes for children by providing research, data, and analysis to the people and institutions whose decisions and actions affect children. For additional information on Child Trends, including publications available to download, visit ...
The percentage of children living in families with incomes below the poverty line has increased from 16.2 percent in 2000 to 18.0 percent in 2007. 3 Thus, a large number of children-nearly one in five-are poor. a Child poverty merits attention because a substantial body of research links poverty with lower levels of child well-being. For a variety of reasons, when compared with children from more affluent families, poor children are more likely to have low academic achievement, to drop out of school, and to have health, behavioral, and emotional problems. These linkages are particularly strong for children whose families experience deep poverty, who are poor during early childhood, and who are trapped in poverty for a long time. This Research Brief draws on Census data for 2007 to present a statistical portrait of children in poverty in the United States, 4 updating similar briefs Child Trends produced in 1999 and 2002. The brief highlights research on the consequences of poverty for children and suggests program and policy approaches that hold promise for decreasing poverty among low-income children and their families. TRENDS The overall child poverty rate rose significantly. • For children younger than 18, the poverty rate increased from 17.4 percent in 2006 to 18 percent in 2007, the highest rate since 1998. This 18 percent translates into 13.3 million children living in poverty in the United States in 2007, 5 an increase of 497,000 children between 2006 and 2007. 6 The percentage of children living in deep poverty had been declining at the turn of the century but is now on the rise. b • In 2007, 8 percent of children lived in deep or extreme poverty (below 50 percent of the poverty line). 7 The percentage of children living in extreme poverty was 9 percent in 1995 and had decreased to 7 percent by 2000. Since 2003, it has been 8 percent. 8 • Analyses suggest that children experiencing extreme poverty may be even worse off than their counterparts were in the mid-1990s because their families have become less likely to use the social programs for which they are eligible (such as food stamps and Medicaid). 9 a This brief reports on the U.S. official poverty line, which is the measure used in most research studies. Considerable discussion focuses on an improved measure of poverty, recommended a decade ago by the National Research Council. 10 b The 2007 Health and Human Services poverty guidelines list the poverty level at an annual income of $13,690 for a two-person household, $17,170 for a three-person household, and $34,570 for an eight-person household. The poverty line is drawn at slightly higher income levels for residents of Alaska and Hawaii. Child Trends is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research center that studies children at all stages of development. Our mission is to improve outcomes for children by providing research, data, and analysis to the people and institutions whose decisions and actions affect children. For additional information on Child Trends, including publications available to download, visit ...
BACKGROUND Research suggests that incentives can motivate children and teens to become interested in activities that they might not have been interested in initially, 1,2 and that incentives can also motivate them to continue their involvement in these activities. 3 Specifically, using incentives can help motivate children and teens to attend and remain involved in out-of-school time programs. 4 This motivation is especially important in light of the growing body of evidence showing the benefits of regular participation in out-of-school programs for children and youth. 5 Some research has suggested that external rewards (such as incentives) can decrease children and teens' intrinsic motivation, 6 interest, 7 and creativity; 8 however, effects have typically been reported for children and youth already motivated to participate in a particular activity. 9 This brief discusses the usefulness of out-of-school time program incentives and highlights several types of incentives that programs may want to consider. WHAT ARE INCENTIVES? Incentives are tangible or intangible rewards used to motivate a person or group to behave in a certain way; for example, motivating children to increase their work effort and overall performance in school. 10 For the purposes of this research brief, incentives for out-of-school time programs are defined as follows: Incentives are the various methods used to motivate and/or reward children and youth to participate in out-of-school time programs. 11 Incentives may be in the form of activities (such as special field trips, food, or recreation) or in the form of rewards (such as gift certificates). WHY SHOULD OUT-OF-SCHOOL TIME PROGRAMS USE INCENTIVES? Research suggests that regular participation in out-of-school time programs can benefit children and youth in many ways. Out-of-school time program participation can spur higher academic achievement, 12 improve school attendance 13 and student behavior, 14 and increase effort in and enjoyment of school, 15 and it may deter youth from delinquency. 16 But such benefits cannot be obtained if children and youth do not attend programs, or do not attend them regularly. 17 With so many activities competing for pre-teens' and teens' attention (e.g., jobs, school sports, and even risky lures, such as gang involvement), it is sometimes difficult to recruit young people to participate in out-of-school time programs. 18 Incentives offer one way to boost this participation. In particular: Incentives may promote program attendance. Incentives can motivate youth to attend out-ofschool time programs. Financial incentives, in particular, have been found to motivate older youth to attend after-school activities. 19 Research shows positive associations between program attendance and program offerings that can be used as incentives, such as special art projects and recreational and academic activities. 20 Incentives may promote a sense of belonging to a program. Research has found that program activities that can also be used as incentives-such as special leadershi...
BACKGROUND Young people who live in rural areas are less likely to finish high school 1 and to complete college 2 than their urban and suburban peers. These adolescents are also more likely to use drugs and alcohol. 3 In fact, rural adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17 have the highest levels of drug use in this age group. 4 Out-ofschool time programs in rural areas can provide healthy and constructive activities that offer productive ways for children and youth to spend their time, build positive relationships, and receive academic support. 5,6,7,8 This brief highlights the challenges faced by rural out-of-school programs and suggests several strategies that can strengthen these programs. WHAT ARE RURAL COMMUNITIES? Rural communities are areas located outside of urbanized or metropolitan areas, with populations of 10,000 or larger. 9 Rural communities also include non-metropolitan towns 10 of fewer than 2,500 residents. 11 These towns are often located in open areas outside of suburban communities 12 and are sparsely populated. 13 The United States has approximately 2,000 rural counties, which cover 75 percent of U.S. land. 14 Nearly onefifth of all Americans live in rural areas. 15 WHAT SPECIAL CHALLENGES DO RURAL OUT-OF-SCHOOL PROGRAMS FACE? Out-of-school programs in rural areas share many of the same challenges that programs in other areas face, such as coping with limited funding and addressing staff recruitment and retention issues. But studies have also identified unique challenges that can hinder the success of rural out-of-school programs: Rural programs serve at-risk populations. Although many rural areas are not impoverished, 16 communities farther away from urban areas have higher poverty rates than those adjacent to urban areas. 17 Nearly one in five rural children lives in poverty, compared with 15 percent of children in urban areas. 18 Socioeconomic disadvantages and limited health services put some rural youth at risk of academic failure or participation in "risky behaviors," such as substance abuse or criminal activity. 19 One in five rural children is food insecure (that is, he or she has limited, uncertain, or no access to nutritious or safe foods 20). Geographic isolation can also limit access to health care and other social services. Correspondingly, limited preventive services can contribute to an increased risk of poorer mental health. 21 Living in a rural area is also associated with higher teen suicide risk, as research links geographic isolation and a heightened risk of suicide among the male teen population. 22 Suicide rates in some rural communities are among the highest in the nation. 23 Geographic isolation can contribute to poor access to transportation. Rural communities are often spread over large geographic areas, resulting in long travel distances between children's homes and program sites. 24 Children in impoverished rural households are three times more likely to be without transportation than are children from non-rural households. 25 Rural areas often lack public transp...
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
customersupport@researchsolutions.com
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.