This report examines the academic and civic behavior outcomes of teenagers and young adults who have engaged deeply with the arts in or out of school. In several small-group studies, children and teenagers who participated in arts education programs have shown more positive academic and social outcomes in comparison to students who did not…

Despite decades of research on the benefits of educational expectations, researchers have failed to show that unrealized plans are consequential for mental health, as self-discrepancy and other social psychological theories would predict. This article uses two national longitudinal studies of youth to test whether unrealized educational…

The transition to adulthood can be particularly challenging for youth growing up in distressed neighborhoods. Using the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997, this fact sheet compares the adolescent risk behaviors and young adult outcomes of youth from distressed neighborhoods with those of youth from non-distressed neighborhoods. All…

In 2007, nearly 40 percent of children in the United States lived in low-income families--families with incomes at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty level (FPL). Youth from low-income families are vulnerable to poor outcomes as adults, as these youth often lack the resources and opportunities found to lead to better outcomes. This fact…

The transition to adulthood can be particularly challenging when a young adult experiences mental health problems. This fact sheet uses data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 to explore the young adult outcomes and adolescent risk behaviors of youth suffering from depression and anxiety as they make this transition. Depression…

American educational leaders and philosophers have long valued schooling for its role in preparing the nation's youth to be civically engaged citizens. Numerous studies have found a positive relationship between education and subsequent civic participation. However, little is known about possible variation in effects by selection into higher…

Head Start is a federally funded preschool program for poor children designed to help close the gap between those children and their more advantaged peers before they begin public schooling. Given that Head Start appears to have positive long-run impacts on its recipients, a natural and important next question to ask is: What are the channels…

Critics of Head Start contend that many programs spend too much money on programs extraneous to children. On the other hand, Head Start advocates argue that the families of severely disadvantaged children need a broad range of services. Given the available evidence, it has been impossible to assess the validity of these claims. In this study, we…

Data from the NLSY (National Longitudinal Survey of Youth) were analyzed to test two competing hypotheses regarding how poverty affects the relationship between delinquency and educational attainment. The cumulative disadvantage perspective argues that poor youth suffer greater consequences for their involvement in delinquency than middle and…

This paper uses data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth to answer two questions about the effects of the Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) program: (1) Does the length of time that one receives AFDC affect the likelihood of permanently leaving AFDC?; (2) What personal and family characteristics are associated with…

Describes early childhood developmental deficits associated with long-term poverty as indicated by the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY). Suggests substantial disadvantages in cognitive development among young children in chronically poor families. Deficits appear in a variety of indices of cognitive or socioemotional development,…

Using data from the first cycle of the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth, this study examines the impact of junior kindergarten on children's later skills in math, above and beyond regional differences and individual/household factors. It was hypothesized that earlier schooling would better prepare children for first formal…

Analyzes National Longitudinal Survey of Youth data to examine whether adolescents living in low-income cities have less accurate information about labor market institutions than affluent teens and whether information influences attainment. All teens underestimate educational requirements. Inner-city teens have less information than those in other…

Education professionals have long known that family background is a stronger predictor of academic success than are school or teacher characteristics. The past 30 years have seen a series of drastic alterations in patterns of family living in the United States, and these changes mean that a substantial number of youngsters are being born or are…