B4065 - The Impact of Early Child Development on Social Mobility in the UK - 13/06/2022

B number: 
B4065
Principal applicant name: 
Matt Dickson | University of Bath (United Kingdom)
Co-applicants: 
Mrs Rachel Ambler
Title of project: 
The Impact of Early Child Development on Social Mobility in the UK
Proposal summary: 

The main research question that this project will address is: how do parental investments and parenting practices in the pre-school years influence the formation of human capital in children and contribute to the transmission of socio-economic status between generations.

During the pre-school years, though there are many outside influences on children, it is parents that have the greatest impact on their offspring. Parental investments before the age of three are likely to be as important, if not more, than what happens from age three onwards, given the dynamic complementarity between early and later skill development.

The project aims to extend our understanding of how (and when) gaps in attainment across socio-economic status emerge. We will map the relationships between measures of parental investment in the early years and long-term socio-economic outcomes and investigate the extent to which these are mediated through educational attainment. The empirical analysis will use data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) with linkage to the National Pupil Database. The data will be used to empirically investigate the extent of differences in early child investments and parenting practices between children/parents and how any differences relate to the later life outcomes of the children.

Impact of research: 
This project will identify the key parental investments in the very earliest years of life which lead to long-term economic success. The over-arching aim is to increase social mobility. To date, research in this domain has focused on experience from pre-school (age 3) onwards, neglecting the role of the very earliest years for human capital formation. We will add to the literature and policy understanding by more precisely quantifying how early-life investments and experiences help, or hinder, social mobility. We will quantify the relative size of the well-documented achievement gaps at school entry between advantaged and disadvantaged children, identifying when and, importantly, why they start to increase. The research will help to inform policy by uncovering which everyday parenting practices during infancy enhance outcomes later in life so we can make robust policy recommendations regarding the timing of targeted interventions in the earliest years of life, and even pre-birth. We will argue that early childhood should be an integral part of policy decisions; using this analysis to show that the role of the earliest phase of life for human capital formation is pivotal in understanding, and overcoming, the inequality and disadvantage that persist for many families. The force of this argument will be underpinned by data from four generations, uniquely available in the ALSPAC, which presents an exciting opportunity to expand our understanding of intergenerational mobility. Our findings will be of interest to policymakers in the Dept. for Education, the Dept. for Health and Social Care, and the Office of the Children’s Commissioner, as well as the Social Mobility Commission and we will actively engage with them. Understanding the role of the earliest interactions between parents and their children in the transmission of socio-economic status from one generation to the next will help in the design of policies aimed at increasing social mobility and widening opportunity, with the potential for significant long-term impact.
Date proposal received: 
Monday, 9 May, 2022
Date proposal approved: 
Monday, 16 May, 2022
Keywords: 
Social Science, Behaviour - e.g. antisocial behaviour, risk behaviour, etc., Cognitive impairment, Statistical methods, Childhood - childcare, childhood adversity, Cognition - cognitive function, Development, Intelligence - memory, Linkage, Parenting, Social science, Statistical methods