Prenatal maternal depression affects both mother and fetus with long-term implications for offspring vulnerability to psychopathology through alterations to brain development, stress physiology, negative emotionality, and cognitive control. This article reviews evidence for the negative impact of prenatal maternal depression on offspring…

Early care and education in the United States is in crisis. The period between birth and kindergarten is a crucial time for a child's development. Yet vast racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic disparities that begin early in children's lives contribute to starkly different long-term outcomes for adults. Compared to other advanced economies, child…

Children's early social experiences shape their developing neurological and biological systems for good or for ill, writes Ross Thompson, and the kinds of stressful experiences that are endemic to families living in poverty can alter children's neurobiology in ways that undermine their health, their social competence, and their ability…

Social disadvantage is not simply a question of income poverty but is a combination of deprivation and social exclusion (Saunders 2006). Those living in poverty, lone parents (Saunders 2006) and minority ethnic groups (which is often confounded with poverty) are all at risk of social disadvantage (Bradley 2001a). Social disadvantage can have a…

Financial hardship can result from many different circumstances--a poor economy, the loss of a job, underemployment, the prolonged illness of a family member, divorce, poor money management, or a combination of several factors. Whatever the cause, the resulting impact on a family can be stressful for all members, including children. Stress from…

This paper presents a picture of risk and challenge for youth in distressed communities and outlines how these communities can band together to create a continuum of supportive activities to bolster youth's success in school and life. As youth grow and develop, individualized support and exposure to new experiences has a significant impact on…

Research in the neurobiological, behavioral, and social sciences has dramatically increased our capacity to provide effective intervention for economically disadvantaged children. According to Neuman, however, U.S. policymakers have made little use of this body of research to improve the prospects of children at risk. This article discusses seven…

In Mark Greenberg's view, a national child care strategy should pursue four goals. Every parent who needs child care to get or keep work should be able to afford care without having to leave children in unhealthy or dangerous environments; all families should be able to place their children in settings that foster education and healthy…

Since the 1970s, the share of U.S. children growing up in single-parent families has doubled, a trend that has disproportionately affected disadvantaged families. Paul Amato and Rebecca Maynard argue that reversing that trend would reduce poverty in the short term and, perhaps more important, improve children's growth and development over the long…

This article presents an emergent conceptual model of childhood adultification and economic disadvantage derived from 5 longitudinal ethnographies of children and adolescents growing up in low-income families. Childhood adultification involves contextual, social, and developmental processes in which youth are prematurely, and often…

"No Baby Left Behind" was created to have an impact on the school readiness of children in the community today and in the future. Each year, there are an increasing number of students who have learning difficulties. Many of these problems are preventable. Accidents, poor nutrition (of the mother and/or child), drug use, alcohol use, and lack of…

Uses J Bowbly's (1969) theory of attachment as a framework for considering the implications of a lack of outdoor access for parental strategies and for the interaction of parents and children in low-income families. It argues that having access to outdoor play opportunities is supportive of healthy child development and responsive parenting and…

Part of a series on early childhood demonstration programs designed to improve early parent-child relationships, stimulate positive child development, and prevent later behavior difficulties, the pamphlet describes the Infant Satellite Nursery Program, developed in Honolulu, Hawaii, to provide low-income families with subsidized, home-based care…

Describes a paradigm for identifying male involvement in Comprehensive Child Development Programs (CCDP) that is based on 4 years of service delivery for 40 adult males participating in Project EAGLE, a federally funded CCDP in Kansas City (Kansas). The paper addresses issues of diversity of characteristics and participation patterns of the males…

Describes qualities of a good preschool child-development program: Competent staff, parent partnerships, administrative support, and school board support. Provides list of online resources. (PKP)