The Long Reach of Early Childhood Poverty

In this research brief, the authors review the evidence linking early childhood poverty to long-lasting negative outcomes and discusses strategies to mitigate the effects of poverty-induced stress on vulnerable families with young children. Emerging research in neuroscience and developmental psychology suggests that poverty early in a child’s life may be particularly harmful because the astonishingly rapid development of young children’s brains leaves them sensitive (and vulnerable) to environmental conditions.