title: Labor market returns to an early childhood stimulation intervention in Jamaica.
abstract: A substantial literature shows that U.S. early childhood interventions have important long-term economic benefits. However, there is little evidence on this question for developing countries. We report substantial effects on the earnings of participants in a randomized intervention conducted in 1986-1987 that gave psychosocial stimulation to growth-stunted Jamaican toddlers. The intervention consisted of weekly visits from community health workers over a 2-year period that taught parenting skills and encouraged mothers and children to interact in ways that develop cognitive and socioemotional skills. The authors reinterviewed 105 out of 129 study participants 20 years later and found that the intervention increased earnings by 25%, enough for them to catch up to the earnings of a nonstunted comparison group identified at baseline (65 out of 84 participants).
authors.affiliation: University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA. National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), Cambridge, MA, USA. gertler@haas.berkeley.edu.
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Gertler
authors.affiliation: University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA. American Bar Foundation, Chicago, IL, USA. Institute for Fiscal Studies, University College London, London, UK.
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Heckman
authors.affiliation: University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
authors.forename: Rodrigo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Pinto
authors.affiliation: University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
authors.forename: Arianna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zanolini
authors.affiliation: The World Bank, Washington, DC, USA.
authors.forename: Christel
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Vermeersch
authors.affiliation: The University of The West Indies, Kingston, Jamaica.
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Walker
authors.affiliation: The University of The West Indies, Kingston, Jamaica.
authors.forename: Susan M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.affiliation: University College London, London, UK.
authors.forename: Sally
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Grantham-McGregor
mesh_terms: D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003071:Cognition; D003906:Developing Countries / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D018479:Early Intervention, Educational / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004644:Emotions; D004651:Employment / Q000191:economics* / Q000639:trends; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007563:Jamaica; D008297:Male; D009034:Mother-Child Relations / Q000523:psychology*; D016487:Parenting / Q000523:psychology; D011584:Psychology; D012456:Salaries and Fringe Benefits / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055815:Young Adult