Effects of center-based child care on disadvantaged children: Evidence from a randomized research design

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Herbst, Chris M.
• 署名单位: Arizona State University; Arizona State University-Downtown Phoenix
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF POLICY ANALYSIS AND MANAGEMENT
• ISSN/ISSBN: 1520-6688
• DOI: 10.1002/pam.70033
• 发表日期: 2026-01-13
• 页码: e70033
• 关键词: low-birth-weight; early intervention; premature-infants; PREKINDERGARTEN PROGRAM; perry preschool; income; achievement; HEALTH; BEHAVIOR; outcomes

摘要

This paper uses the random assignment of poor families to treatment and control conditions in the Comprehensive Child Development Program (CCDP) to estimate the effects of center-based child care enrollment on child well-being. Implemented in the early-1990s, the CCDP aimed to improve child development and family functioning by offering those in the treatment group 5 years of high-quality child care along with case management. As a result, treated children were substantially more likely to be enrolled in center-based programs throughout the preschool-age years, and I use this variation to estimate the impact of center care on children's language and social skills as well as health. I uncover mixed results: More time spent in center-based settings improves language skills but reduces social skills in the short run, and both effects fade out for most children within 1 to 2 years. I also find that early center care use is strongly predictive of later Head Start enrollment, indicating that a more deliberate family retention strategy may be effective at extending children's exposure to high-quality early education.