RAND Study Says Early Childhood Intervention Programs Save Money and Benefit Children, Families and Society

RAND | News Release :
A RAND Corporation study issued today says well-designed programs for disadvantaged children age 4 and younger can produce economic benefits ranging from $1.26 to $17 for each $1 spent on the programs.

The report by RAND Labor and Population says effective early childhood programs return more to society in benefits than they cost, by enabling youngsters to lead more successful lives and be less dependent on future government assistance. Researchers say this is because such programs help children improve their thinking skills, do better in school and develop socially.

The large differences in the dollar returns for different programs reflect variations in the populations of children served by the programs and the range of benefits that researchers could express in dollar terms. As a result, not all programs could be easily compared to other programs on a dollar basis or expressed in dollar values.

The report says high-quality early childhood programs can keep children out of expensive special education programs; reduce the number of students who fail and must repeat a grade in school; increase high school graduation rates; reduce juvenile crime; reduce the number of youngsters who wind up on welfare as adults; increase the number of students who go to college; and help adults who participated in the programs as children get better jobs and earn higher incomes.

Some of the largest benefits came from the most expensive and comprehensive programs that provide services to children throughout their first five years of life. The researchers found, however, that even some small-scale, less expensive programs also provided benefits. In addition, more disadvantaged children tend to receive greater benefits from programs. The research team believes that its estimates of benefits are likely to be conservative.

The RAND study focused on three types of early childhood programs that are typically called intervention programs and target children who need help because of several factors – such as living in poverty or in a single-parent household. Examples of intervention programs ...
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