How Do You Think?

Undesirable behaviors occur for many reasons.  In order to reduce problematic (negative) behaviors we first must come to an understanding of why they are occurring.  I can’t emphasize this enough – UNDERSTANDING WHY IS THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT THING.  The WHY guides WHAT WE DO.  As we always tell our staff “In order to reduce a problematic (negative) behavior, we must first understand why the child is doing it, and then we must change our behavior accordingly.”  There is almost always something going on in the child’s world that spurs on negative behaviors.   Many of those things, we as the adults can, and must change.

There are common themes among the reasons why children misbehave. These include:

1. ESCAPE/AVOIDANCE – Often children misbehave in order to escape or avoid having to do something undesirable (e.g., having to come inside after playing outside, having to sit to eat, having to go to bed, having to do school work).
2. TO GET ATTENTION – Some negative behaviors occur because the child wants attention and doesn’t care whether it’s positive or negative attention. Sometimes negative behaviors occur because s/he is not being attended to for positive behavior, and/or the child actually enjoys getting adults upset.  One common example: there is nothing more fun than running away from an adult and being chased. 
3. TO GET AN ITEM OR ACTIVITY – Some children discover that if they misbehave they get what they want. The classic example is throwing a temper tantrum at a store to get a toy or a piece of candy.
4. TO GET SENSORY INPUT – The negative behavior may itself provide enjoyable feelings (e.g., running, climbing, and hand flapping or rocking may be naturally reinforcing – they just feel good or make them feel better).

It is important to determine whether any or all of these are occurring in such a way that encourages the problematic behavior.  But it is also important to understand whether:

1. The child understands that the negative behavior is unacceptable
2. The child understands what to do instead of the negative behavior (e.g., has the skills to do what we want to see)
3. The child has rational control over his/her behavior
4. Our expectations are appropriate for the child (e.g., Can s/he do what we want him or her to do?, Are we expecting too much?, Is the circumstance too overwhelming for the child?, etc.)
5. There is sufficient motivation/incentive for the child to do what we want? Is the reinforcement for the negative behavior greater than the reinforcement available for what we want to see?

Whenever I am asked to help staff or parents address a negative behavior – I always investigate all of the above issues.  I also look into the following things:

1. Have there been any major changes in the child’s life (e.g., changes in living circumstances including where home is, the birth of a sibling, parental discord or separation, an absence or illness of a major care provider, more stress at home, and a major change in the routine of life)? It is important to note that even changes in daylight savings time or the chaos of the holidays can be very disruptive.  Another major change, as is certainly the case now, includes major breaks from school.
2. Is the child suffering with an illness or unusual discomfort (e.g., an infection, GI Issues, dental issues)?
3. When did the behavior start?
4. What is the trend (e.g., is it getting worse)?
5. When is the problem behavior occurring the most and when is it least likely to occur?

It is important to investigate all of these issues and to do so thoroughly.  Only through such an analysis are we likely to come to an understanding of WHY the behavior is occurring and what we can effectively do to reduce the behavior.  Here are some Key Thoughts to keep in mind as you conduct an analysis of your child’s problematic behavior:

1. Always try to look at the above issues from the child’s perspective
2. Journal the behavior using the following guidelines on the Negative Behavior Journal
3. LIMIT YOU EFFORTS TO ONE BEHAVIOR AT A TIME.

The following guidelines are designed to help you journal the negative behavior.  I highly advise that you document each occurrence of the negative behavior on the Negative Behavior Journal immediately following the behavior, paying special attention to each of the following:

Setting/Activity:

• Specify:
  • The physical location of the difficulty
  • The activity the child was involved in prior to the difficulty
• Pay attention to the things going on that likely affect the child (e.g., demands, environmental stimuli, automatically reinforcing behaviors)

Antecedent:

• The antecedent is the stimuli or event that happened immediately prior to the negative behavior. It is important to note that the connection between the antecedent and the negative behavior are not always immediately clear.  Journal the behavior over a period of time (at least one week).
• Examples of possible Antecedents (triggers):
  • A desirable activity was terminated (you took away something fun)
  • A desirable activity asked for by the child, but you said “No.”
  • A demand for work was placed on the child
  • Something aversive (unpleasant) occurred in the environment or entered the environment
  • The child had to transition away from a highly desirable activity to a less preferred or unpleasant activity

Behavior:

• What specifically did the child do? (e.g., hit, scream, drop, head bang, bite, run away)

Consequences:

• From the child’s perspective – what occurred in the environment in response to his or her behavior that may encourage or discourage the negative behavior itself? For example did the child:
  • Escape a demand or at least avoid it for a while because s/he engaged in the negative behavior?
  • Did s/he get to sustain involvement in the desired activity for a longer period of time because s/he engaged in the negative behavior?
  • Did s/he capture you attention (positive or negative) or get something s/he wanted because s/he engaged in the negative behavior?
  • Did s/he get pleasure out of agitating the care-provider or his/her peers?
  • Have to deal with you calmly asserting a demand with escalating insistence until s/he did what you wanted? (generally a good thing)

Comments:

• Think about both the immediate circumstances and the long term implications of the interplay between the environment, the antecedents, his or her behavior, and the consequences of the negative behavior.
  • Is the environment set up to facilitate positive desirable behaviors (success) or negative behaviors (failure)?
  • Does the child know what positive behavior is expected in place of the negative behavior?
  • Is the reinforcement for the desired behavior strong enough to actually motivate him/her to do it?
  • Did my response increase or decrease the likelihood that the problematic behavior will occur again in the future?
  • What natural (automatic) reinforcers are at play here?
  • Really, what is the child getting from this situation?

Do the best you can to understand the WHY of the behavior and journal the negative behavior for at least one week.  Doing so will help you understand more thoroughly the dynamics in place that contribute to the negative behavior and perhaps inadvertently encourage it.  Use the following Negative Behavior Journal to record every occurrence of the negative behavior targeted for reduction.  Try to be honest about your behavior and inconsistencies (if any).  Nobody is perfect and this is a learning process.  Success in this process comes when you:

• Behave as if you are a detective attempting to uncover the clues to a great mystery
• Make substantial efforts to enter the mindset of the child and attempt to look at the world through his or her eyes (and other senses)
• Accept that:
  • Most negative behaviors occur for a reason – they DO NOT tend to occur out of the blue (for no particular reason)
  • For each negative behavior there may be several reasons WHY – pay attention to the behavior over time and consider all possible functions of the behavior. For example the child may run away from you when you set a limit (tell him or her “NO!” ) or when they want your attention (e.g., want to play a cat and mouse chase game).
  • Children tend to do what works for them – We must learn WHY it works for them and then change WHAT works for them
  • There may be things in the environment that trigger the behavior (e.g., sounds, people, demands)
  • In order to change your child’s behavior, you will first likely have to change your own behavior and/or expectations
    • There may be things that you do that inadvertently encourage or maintain the behavior
    • There may be changes necessary with regard to your expectations
  • The most efficient way to change a negative behavior is to do the hard work to understand what is truly going on. You will also have to accept that it takes time and effort to understand WHY – there are no short cuts
  • Once you think you understand WHY, it takes time to develop a good intervention plan – take the time to do so carefully with investment and input from ALL care providers
  • A shared parenting plan is essential – inconsistency across parents will definitely weaken the intervention
  • If you are inconsistent in your dealings with the behavior across time, it will take even longer to reduce the negative behavior itself
  • Most negative behaviors serve a purpose for the child. Our job is to make the negative behavior less purposeful – and make a desirable behavior more purposeful for the child.  If the negative behavior “works” for the child just now and then, it will take much longer to eliminate the negative behavior. 
  • Behavior change takes time – your plan may start to work right away – but there is a good chance it will get worse for a while – so don’t give up right away – some children with very challenging behaviors are particularly skilled at getting the adults around them to give up on behavior change plans

Click here for the Negative Behavior Journal (pdf)

THERE IS A LOT TO THINK ABOUT HERE.  FOR GUIDANCE AND SUPPORT, PLEASE REACH OUT TO YOUR CHILD’S TEACHER OR THERAPIST.  PERHAPS THEY CAN ASSIST YOU OR LINK YOU WITH A BEHAVIOR SPECIALIST.

There are numerous barriers to the provision of tele-therapy for educational purposes.  Among the most challenging issues are Technological Problems and the level of Student Cooperation.   This Trouble Shooting Guide addresses these barriers.

Technological Problems

There are many technological challenges that may be a product of the platform used (e.g., Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Classroom, FaceTime, Skype, etc.) and the technical skills of the users (including you, the parent, and the student).  Other issues that may contribute to the challenges are the devices used (e.g., smartphone, tablet, and/or laptop/desktop computer), the operating system used (e.g., Windows 10, Apple iOS), and cell phone receptivity or internet broadband width.  Variations among these variables will affect the quality and consistency of interaction through this medium.

1. Platform Issues – Various platforms have different capabilities making them either quite basic (e.g., Microsoft Teams, Skype, FaceTime, Facebook Messenger) or sophisticated (e.g., Zoom). The basic platforms are good for one-way teaching (e.g., lectures, storytelling, guided movement, counseling, or consultation).  Zoom for example, is capable of more interactive back and forth instruction using videos, boom-cards, and instructional apps and games across multiple devices.  These capabilities offer significant instructional advantages; however, they require more technical skills from the teacher/therapist and even the parent/child.  The bottom line is that you must:
   1. Choose the platform that is best for the purposes you have in mind.
   2. Learn how to use the platform(s) you choose (e.g., through online training videos and practice).
   3. Know which web browsers and devices support your platform of choice (e.g., Zoom works best on a computer using Chrome as a web browser as opposed to phones/tablets that have reduced interactivity).
   4. Help the parents make appropriate accommodations, downloads, etc.
2. Anticipate that there will be problems based on the variation in devices, operating systems, web browsers, and the bandwidth available to each individual, and PLAN ACCORDINGLY. You will have to adjust your expectations based on the reality of the resources available in the student’s home.
3. Work through all these issues with the parent first before trying to teach your students.
4. Adjust your plans and expectations based on the tools and skills available. Technological hiccups during instruction have the effect of degrading the quality of instruction, as well as the willingness of the learner.

Student Cooperation

Tele-therapy necessitates the development of new skill sets for both you as a teacher (as you well know) and for the students as learners.  Provided your skills are at a point where you have started instructional tele-therapy, and you have taken the steps to facilitate the technology in your student’s home, your first job should have included teaching the child how to be a remote learner.  If not, you will have to back up (more on this in a minute).  Success is also dependent on building and sustaining rapport with the parent.  They are your allies in the instructional process – your eyes, ears, and hands.  They will facilitate or hinder your access to the student and they are absolutely key to your success. 

1. If you have both good access to the child and caregiver support, but you are struggling with maintaining student engagement and/or attention, you must assess whether the problem is:
   1. environmental (e.g., struggles with competing distractions, struggles with equipment interface), OR
   2. behavioral (e.g., the child doesn’t have the skills or motivation to attend).
2. If the problem is Environmental – based on barriers within the home environment, use the Tip Sheet I’ve developed for helping the parent set up the environment for success (https://bit.ly/3btkNpc).
3. If the problem is Behavioral – the child is struggling with sustaining attention and/or following instructions appropriately during instruction, I highly recommend that you use the Tip Sheet I’ve developed for teaching instructional control (https://bit.ly/3bzAECy).
4. The keys to success are mastery of the technology, having the parents as collaborative teaching partners, fostering a good learning environment, and well planned lessons that are realistic in terms of the technological limits in place, the capabilities of the child, and the demand load you place on the child.

Developed by Gerald T. Guild, PhD, Licensed Psychologist and Behavior Specialist

The use of Video Conferencing to teach young children is a new challenge for everyone involved.  In order for it to work, YOU and the teacher or therapist (instructor) MUST FIRST TEACH YOUR CHILD HOW TO LEARN IN THIS NEW WAY.  Teaching this new skill will likely be the first thing the instructor will want to work on.  Without the ability to attend to and participate in instruction, your child will not likely benefit from video conferencing.  The acquisition of this new skill requires careful planning and thoughtful instruction. 

Strategies that will help make this work:

1. Set the Environment Up for Success. There are several extremely important objectives here:
   1. The instructor must be very clear with you about their goals, objectives, and expectations. You will be the instructor’s eyes, ears, and hands, so if you need help or support – please ask for it!
   2. Work through the technological barriers FIRST. Download the necessary apps and/or programs as guided by the instructor and be prepared to practice with the instructor before your child is asked to participate.  Getting the technology set up and working can be the most challenging step in this entire process.  Patience is important.  You should also know in advance what device will be used, how it will be used, and where it will be used.   
   3. Set up the environment in order to eliminate competing distractions. The specifics of this will depend on your child and your home, but your child will need a good learning environment (e.g., a quiet room, no siblings watching TV or playing nearby, and minimal access to distracting toys, etc.).
   4. The instructor may suggest using visual schedules, When-Then contingencies, and preceding the session with sensory activities that increase focus. The instructor should help you get these things set up.
2. The Instructor will likely want to start slowly and focus on making it fun. Once the technology is working, you know what to expect, and the environment is set up for success, the instructor will likely start by having fun with your child.  They will minimize demands so that your child learns that this video conferencing thing is fun and that their instructor is just as fun on the screen as in person.  The early sessions may be kept short (perhaps very short).  This will require pre-planning – you will likely have to help the instructor know what your child enjoys at home so that they can tap into those interests.
3. Use Positive Behavioral Strategies. The instructor will want to work out a plan for ongoing reinforcement of appropriate attending and participating behavior during the session.  You may be asked to provide those reinforcers during the session.  They may also suggest that you follow the session with a special activity, toy, or treat to reward their hard work (even if it was just play).  This too will require advanced planning and ongoing communication with the instructor.  Please understand that these rewards are for success during the session and that they are important tools in teaching this new skill set.
4. Demands will be placed gradually. The instructor will SLOWLY start folding in small demands as your child’s attending and participation skills improve.  The instructor should initially prioritize making your child feel successful during this new type of instruction.
5. Be Attentive. Both you and the instructor should continually attend to the child’s level of interest in the activities, his or her level of focus, and how conducive the environment is to learning.  It may be necessary to adjust and modify expectations throughout the session.  The instructor will try to end the session before the child’s interest and motivation disappears.  Also they will want to end it on a positive note.  Talking about how the session went, at the end of the session, will be important to the ongoing success of this approach. 
6. Continually Adjust Strategies and Expectations. It will be important to continually assess, adapt, and adjust the strategies, as well as everyone’s expectations throughout each session.  The same is true regarding the quality of the learning environment and the use of reinforcers. 
7. Have Fun & Make it Fun! Brainstorm games, the use of favorite toys, stories, and songs, as well as activities (including physical movement) that can be implemented while video conferencing.  Be creative, be silly, and remember that rule number one is: Have Fun!

Developed by Dr. Gerald T. Guild, PhD, Licensed Psychologist and Behavior Specialist at The Children’s League in Springville, New York and by Kimberly Guild, MS, SLP-CCC, Speech Language Pathologist at Cattaraugus-Allegany BOCES in Olean, NY

The use of Video Conferencing to teach young children, particularly those with disabilities, is fraught with many NEW challenges.  In order for it to work, the instructor MUST FIRST TEACH THE CHILD HOW TO PARTICIPATE ADAPTIVELY.   It is essential to prioritize gaining the instructional control of the student over implementing other IEP objectives.  Consider instructional control in this context, as a new skill-set that is foundational: necessitating careful planning and thoughtful instruction. 

Key Strategies:

1. Set the Environment Up for Success. There are several extremely important objectives here:
   1. Be explicit with caregivers about your goals, objectives, and expectations – they are your key allies and instructional assistants in this process (i.e., your eyes, ears, and hands) and you absolutely need them to work with you to make this happen. This is new to them too, so you must teach them how to teach, and you must keep them on your side.  They will need your guidance, support, and compassion. 
   2. Work through the technological barriers FIRST. Help the caregivers acquire the necessary apps and downloads, and learn the procedures necessary to video conference BEFORE attempting to meet with the child. Practice with the caregiver first, as these challenges must not be underestimated.
   3. Teach the caregiver how to set up the environment in order to eliminate competing reinforcers and distractions. The specifics of this will depend on the child and the resources within the home, but you must discuss with the caregiver what device will be used, how it will be used, where it will be used, and they must understand that their child absolutely needs a conducive learning environment (e.g., a quiet room, no siblings watching TV or playing nearby, and minimal access to competing reinforcers, etc.).  
   4. Also consider the use of visual schedules, When-Then contingencies, and prior to the session, sensory activities that will likely increase the child’s level of focus.
2. Start Small and Focus on Pairing with Reinforcers. Once the technology is working, the caregiver understands what to do, and the environment is set up for success, start by having fun with the child.  Minimize demands at first and just focus on making sure that they have fun with you.  Teach them that this video conferencing thing is fun and that you are just as fun on a screen as you are in person.  Remember to keep it short (perhaps very short).  This will require pre-planning, knowing what the child enjoys at home, and tapping into their inherent interests.
3. Use Positive Behavioral Strategies. Work out a plan for ongoing reinforcement of appropriate attending and participation during the session and follow the session with a contingent highly potent activity, toy, or treat.  This will require advanced planning and ongoing communication with the caregiver as they are the likely providers of the tangible reinforcers.
4. Carefully Approach Demands. Once you have a happy participant (which may take many short and fun visits), SLOWLY start folding in small demands – addressing skills they have already mastered at school.  It will be important to prioritize making them feel successful in order to maintain the child’s motivation.
5. Be Attentive. Continually attend to the child’s motivation, focus of attention, the environment, and the needs of the caregiver as you “work” with the child. Adjust and modify your expectations as the session evolves, try to end it before the child’s interest and motivation disappears (end it on your terms AND on a positive note), and debrief with the caregiver following the session. 
6. Adjust Your Strategies and Expectations Continually. Always assess, adapt, and adjust your practice, your expectations, the environment, and your use of reinforcers. 
7. Have Fun & Make it Fun! Brainstorm games, the use of favorite toys, stories, and songs, as well as activities (including physical movement) that can be implemented while video conferencing.  Be creative, be silly, and rule number one: Have Fun!
8. Ramp Up Demands Slowly and Carefully. As Grandfather Guild always said “The hurrier I go, the behinder I get!”

Developed by Dr. Gerald T. Guild, PhD, Licensed Psychologist and Behavior Specialist at The Children’s League in Springville, New York and by Kimberly Guild, MS, SLP-CCC, Speech Language Pathologist at Cattaraugus-Allegany BOCES in Olean, NY

Very little is normal today and it can be very hard, even for the youngest among us.  Perhaps the hardest thing for your children is the departure from the regular routine of going to school and being with their friends and teachers.  Even harder still may be the pressure on you to provide for your family’s safety and well-being – oh, and keeping the kids happy and learning.   Some children will respond to these times with increased behavioral challenges, sleep problems, toileting regression, and heightened general agitation.  Sound familiar?  Here are TEN TIPS to help you get through this.

1. TAKE CARE OF YOU! – Your children need you – not only in the home, but also your strength and reassurance. This means you need to stay healthy both physically and emotionally.  Do the things that promote physical and emotional well-being (e.g., avoid the virus, exercise, get adequate sleep, avoid excessive screen time, and focus on the positive things you can control).  If you are struggling to cope with all this, contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Disaster Distress Hotline at 800/985-5990 or and the Crisis Text Line, an anonymous texting service available 24/7. Starting a conversation is easy. Text GOT5 to 741741
2. MAINTAIN REGULAR ROUTINES – Although going to school is no longer an option, it is important for your children to have some predictable NEW ROUTINES. Keep bedtime routines the same everyday, build some structured learning time into their day, and perhaps most importantly, actively play with your child everyday – at regularly scheduled times. Consider talking with your child’s Teacher and/or Speech Therapist – they may be able to help you build a daily visual schedule.
3. PROVIDE REASSURANCE – Your children may need to be reassured – although they may not comprehend the full scope of what is going on, they do know that something is different. They may also absorb your stress – so try to keep your cool in their presence, listen to them, speak kindly, and assure them that you are doing all that you can do to keep them safe.
4. PAY LOTS OF ATTENTION TO THE BEHAVIORS THAT YOU LIKE – Often children use the most efficient strategies to get your attention, regardless of whether it’s positive praise or getting yelled at. If they are seeking lots of negative attention – try to refocus your attention on the good things they do – making it easier for them to get your positive praise and attention – and ignore (to the degree you can) the negative attention seeking – making undesirable behavior a less efficient way to get your attention.
5. PLAY WITH AND READ TO YOUR CHILDREN – These are very powerful educational tools that also help manage behavior – use them a lot. Make it part of the routine.  As I say at the preschool where I work: “Rule #1 – Have fun with the kids.”  Silly play routines are also engaging and FUN.
6. RUN ‘EM RAGGED – Physical exercise is another powerful tool to decrease anxiety and promote good sleep routines. This is true for you as well.  For kids, this means active physical play (e.g., chase play, supervised outdoor play, scheduled and supervised jumping and climbing activities).
7. LIMIT SCREEN TIME – Media coverage of COVID-19 is extensive and overwhelming. Check into the news two times a day and entirely avoid exposing your children to it.  Also, avoid using excessive screen time to entertain your children or escaping yourself when you could be positively attending to your children.
8. PRACTICE GOOD HYGIENE – Lots of information out there on this – wash your hands a lot – routinely avoid unnecessary social contact – disinfect frequent contact points – teach good hygiene – model good hygiene
9. BE A GOOD ROLE MODEL – Stay calm – Focus on what you can control – Your children will follow your lead.
10. HAVE A CONTINGENCY PLAN – Develop a plan in case you or someone in your family gets the virus.

We are all together in this – but not.  Although you may not be able to get face-to-face support at this time, there are other ways to get support from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Disaster Distress Hotline at 800/985-5990 and the Crisis Text Line, an anonymous texting service available 24/7. Starting a conversation is easy. Text GOT5 to 741741                 

Remember tip number one: TAKE CARE OF YOU!    

Compiled by Dr. Gerald T. Guild, PhD, NYS Licensed Psychologist and Behavior Specialist.  This information was drawn from reputable sources like the CDC, WHO, The National Child Traumatic Stress Network, and the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Although I did not make a substantial number of posts in 2013, the traffic to my site remained relatively vigorous.  Throughout 2013 my blog had 24,007 hits from 21,042 unique visitors, accounting for nearly 30,000 page views.  I had visitors from every state in the US and 158 nations around the world.  Visitors from the United States accounted for the vast majority of those hits, but the UK, Canada, Australia, India, China, and Germany also brought in large contingents.

Of my posts published in 2013, none made it to this year’s top ten list: five were from 2010,  four were published in 2011, and one was from 2012.  This year the top ranked article (The Moral Instinct) was a 2010 review of a very popular 2008 New York Time’s article by Steven Pinker.   This perennially popular piece ranked 5th last year, 4th in 2011 and 3rd in 2010.   Its bounce to the top this year is more of a testament to Pinker and the popularity of his piece that explores the universality of morals.  In that piece I wrote:

Pinker delves into the neurological factors associated with morality and the evolutionary evidence and arguments for an instinctual morality. He reviews several important studies that provide evidence for these hypotheses. But, he argues that morality is more than an inheritance – it is larger than that. It is contextually driven. He notes: “At the very least, the science tells us that even when our adversaries’ agenda is most baffling, they may not be amoral psychopaths but in the throes of a moral mind-set that appears to them to be every bit as mandatory and universal as ours does to us. Of course, some adversaries really are psychopaths, and others are so poisoned by a punitive moralization that they are beyond the pale of reason. ” He further contends “But in any conflict in which a meeting of the minds is not completely hopeless, a recognition that the other guy is acting from moral rather than venal reasons can be a first patch of common ground.

This article may have also remained popular because of its relevance with regard to the state of affairs in today’s political arena and the application of Jonathon Haidt’s increasingly popular work on the Moral Foundations Theory.  

The 2013 number two ranked piece Nonmoral Nature: It is what it is, is a review of one of Stephen Jay Gould’s most famous articles where he argued that there is no evidence of morality in nature, that in fact “nature as it plays out evolution’s dance, is entirely devoid of anything pertaining to morality or evil. We anthropomorphize when we apply these concepts. Even to suggest that nature is cruel is anthropomorphizing. Any true and deep look at the struggle for life that constantly dances in our midst can scarcely lead to any other conclusion but that nature is brutal, harsh, and nonmoral” (Gould).  Historically this has been a controversial topic and remains so in certain circles today.  This piece has remained popular over the years – ranking 4th last year and 2nd in 2011 and 2010.

Brain MRI

Brainwaves and Other Brain Measures – the 3rd ranking post this year ranked 2nd last year and 1st in 2011. This very popular piece takes a pragmatic, comparative, and colorful look at the various ways of measuring brain activity.  My 2012 article Happiness as Measured by GDP: Really?  is finally getting some attention.  Although it ranked 10th last year, it has climbed into the number four slot this year.  I contend that this is perhaps one of the most important articles I have written.

Proud as a Peacock By Mark Melnick

My critical article on the widely used Implicit Associations Test ranked 5th this year, 6th in 2012, and 4th in 2011. Last year’s number one piece on Conspicuous Consumption and the Peacock’s Tail  is one of my favorite pieces.  It addresses our inherent drive to advance one’s social standing while actually going nowhere on the hedonic treadmill.  It delves into the environmental costs of buying into the illusion of consumer materialism and its biological origins (the signaling instinct much like that of the Peacock’s tail).

I am excited to report that Poverty is a Neurotoxin is also finally gaining some traction.  Published in 2011 it has never achieved a top ranking; although, in my humble opinion, it is no less important.  Rounding out the top ten of 2013, my Hedgehog versus the Fox mindset piece ranked 8th this year, 9th last year, and 10th in 2011. One of my all time favorite posts from 2010,  What Plato, Descartes, and Kant Got Wrong: Reason Does not Rule made it back to the top ten list this year coming in 9th.  It was 7th in 2011 and 8th in 2010.  My 2011 post Where Does Prejudice Come From? ranked 10th this year, 7th last year, and 5th in 2011.

So here is the Top Ten list for 2013.

1. Moral Instinct  (2010) 4182 page views since published – All time ranking #5
2. Non Moral Nature: It is what it is (2010) 4616 page views since published – All time ranking #3
3. Brainwaves and Other Brain Measures (2011) 7941 page views since published – All time ranking #1
4. Happiness as Measured by GDP: Really? (2012) 1719 page views since published – All time ranking #8
5. IAT: Questions of Reliability and Validity  (2010) 2572 page views since published – All time ranking #6
6. Conspicuous Consumption & the Peacock’s Tail (2011) 7677 page views since published – All time ranking #2
7. Poverty is a Neurotoxin (2011) 960 page views since published – All time ranking #18
8. Are you a Hedgehog or a Fox?  (2010) 1702 page views since published – All time ranking #9
9. What Plato, Descartes, and Kant Got Wrong: Reason Does not Rule (2010) 1381 page views since published – All time ranking #12
10. Where Does Prejudice Come From?  (2011) 1625 page views since published – All time ranking #10

Rounding out the top ten All Time Most Popular Pieces are:

• Wicked! Things are NOT as they Seem (2012) 4485 page views since published – All time ranking #4
• Attribution Error (2010) 2263 page views since published – All time ranking #7

These top ranking articles represent the foundational issues that have driven me in my quest to understand how people think.   This cross section of my work is, in fact, a good starting point for those who are new to my blog.

There are several other 2013 posts that ranked outside this year’s top ten list; regardless, I believe they are important.  These other posts include:

1. Mind Pops: Memories from out of the Blue
2. Who Cheats More: The Rich or the Poor?
3. Crime, Punishment, and Entitlement: A Deeper Look
4. Cheaters
5. American Exceptionalism: I’m all for it!
6. Partisan Belief Superiority and Dogmatism as a Source of Political Gridlock

Maintaining relevance is an article, published in 2012, The Meek Shall Inherit The Earth: Our Microbiome, pertains to the collection of an estimated 100 trillion individual organisms (bacteria for the most part) thriving in and on your body that account for about three pounds of your total body weight (about the same weight as your brain).  These little creatures play a huge role in your physical and mental well being and we are just beginning to understand the extent of their reach.  Modern medicine in the future, will likely embrace the microbiotic ecosystem as a means of preventing and treating many illnesses (including treating some mental illnesses).  I have continued to update this piece with comments including links to new research on this topic.

Children of high socioeconomic status (SES) show more activity (dark green) in the prefrontal cortex (top) than do kids of low SES when confronted with a novel or unexpected stimulus. (Mark Kishiyama/UC Berkeley)

Although, not among the most popular articles this year, my pieces on the pernicious affects of poverty on child development from 2011 warrant ongoing attention.  If we truly wish to halt the cycle of poverty, then we need to devote early and evidenced based intervention services for children and families living in poverty.  As it turns out, poverty is a neurotoxin.  Knowing the information in this series should motivate us, as a society, to truly evaluate our current political and economic policies.

• Parenting May Matter: For Infants and the Economically Deprived 

• The Effects of Poverty on Brain Development 

• The Economic, Neurobiological, and Behavioral Implications of Poverty 

• Halting the negative Feedback Loop of Poverty 

• Poverty Preventing Preschools 

• Poverty is a Neurotoxin 

The bottom line:

The human brain, no matter how remarkable, is flawed in two fundamental ways.  First, the proclivities toward patternicity (pareidolia), hyperactive agency detection, and superstition, although once adaptive mechanisms, now lead to many errors of thought.  Since the age of enlightenment, when human-kind developed the scientific method, we have exponentially expanded our knowledge base regarding the workings of the world and the universe.  These leaps of knowledge have rendered those error prone proclivities unessential for survival.  Regardless, they have remained a dominant cognitive force.  Although our intuition and rapid cognitions (intuitions) have sustained us, and in many ways they still do, the subsequent everyday illusions impede us in important ways.

Secondly, we are prone to a multitude of cognitive biases that diminish and narrow our capacity to truly understand the world. Time after time I have written of the dangers of ideology with regard to its capacity to blindfold its disciples.  Often those blindfolds are absolutely essential to sustain the ideology.  And this is dangerous when truths and facts are denied or innocents are subjugated or brutalized.  As I discussed in Spinoza’s Conjecture:

 

“We all look at the world through our personal lenses of experience.  Our experiences shape our understanding of the world, and ultimately our understanding of [it], then filters what we take in.  The end result is that we may reject or ignore new and important information simply because it does not conform to our previously held beliefs.

Because of these innate tendencies, we must make additional effort to step away from what we believe to be true in order to discover what is indeed true.

The Hand of God as an example of pareidolia.

It is often argued that the United States is exceptional with regard to its capabilities and responsibilities.  With respect to its military prowess, and defense budget, it is certainly exceptional.  I am curious however.  To what extent is the US exceptional in other important ways?  Is the US the envy of the world with regard to its educational system and its healthcare?  How safe are Americans?  Further, does America prove exceptional with regard to issues such as equality, democracy, and opportunity?  I for one, am all for being exceptional.  Shouldn’t we strive for superiority in all these areas?  Is not a person’s character judged based on variables other than one’s physical strength?  Are not issues such as kindness, fairness, and morality given important consideration when we evaluate each other?  I suggest that nations too should be judged on these issues.  We as a people certainly judge other nations based on these attributes.

So, how does the US compare to other wealthy and developed nations on these important issues?  Let us take a closer look.  By far, the best accessible and concise analysis of this question is contained in The Measure of a Nation by Howard Steven Friedman.  Dr. Friedman is a prominent statistician and health economist at the United Nations and he teaches at Columbia University.  Measure of a Nation was named by Jared Diamond (author of Pulitzer Prize winning Guns Germs and Steel) as the best book of 2012 in an interview published in the New York Times.  I have to agree with Diamond’s opinion.  Friedman’s book is a data driven assessment of 14 nations, each meeting specific criteria for population (at least 10 million) and wealth (mean GDP at least $20,000).   Friedman methodically and carefully analyzes data from each nation and creates a relative ranking system whereby each nation is evaluated on diverse issues such as Health, Safety, Education, Democracy, and Equality.  The comparison countries include: UK, Canada, Germany, Spain, Portugal, France, Belgium, Italy, Greece, Netherlands, Australia, Korea, and Japan.

Friedman’s book constitutes an ambitious undertaking and he is careful to be clear about the pitfalls associated with the measures and analyses used.  In the end however, as a skilled statistician and economist, he was able to pull together a clear and concise  comparative ranking system that factually answers the question – “Is America Exceptional?”

He are the rankings:

Data is from The Measure of a Nation, by Howard Steven Friedman

I don’t know about you, but I was appalled by these findings.   The US comes up with a last place ranking on a majority of very important quality of life variables with regard to health, safety, democracy, and equality.  It gets worse when you look at all the comparisons drawn in Friedman’s book.  I included only those measures that could easily be put in a table without the need for deeper explanation.   And with regard to education, we are in the middle and bottom third of the rankings, except when it comes to years of education and percent of the population getting secondary education.   Our literacy rankings are unacceptable.

Neither Friedman or I are driven to bash the United States.  Instead, he and I both are motivated by a desire for exceptionalism across all these measures.  Friedman makes recommendations about how we as a people, and a nation, could improve on all these important variables.   The subtitle of his book is How to Regain America’s Competitive Edge And Boost Our Global Standing.  The problem is one of over-confidence and unquestioning nationalism.  To boldly contend that America is exceptional in every way is both unsubstantiated and untrue.  How I wish it was otherwise.

It is time to step back, look deeply at these issues, accept the reality that we can do better, and then devote our efforts to making it so.  We are arguably the richest and most powerful nation in the world with a vast capability for excellence.  It comes down to priorities and hubris.  If “we the people” demand excellence in these areas, and stand-up and make our voices heard, politicians will have to respond.  If however, we bombastically proclaim “We’re #1” regardless of what the evidence suggests, we will continue to languish.   Should not the measure of a nation, with such capabilities,  be the best?

Spread the word, get and read Friedman’s book.  Let’s start changing the dialogue in this country away from the current divisive and unproductive rancor, and begin focusing on what really matters.  It starts with knowledge and it ends with a healthier, safer, smarter, and more fulfilled populace whose politicians truly represent them and actually address important issues.

◊

For other discussions and data points on US rankings relative to other nations see:

We’re # 37! USA! USA! USA! A look at the US Healthcare System

A 2010 US Department of Education report releasing the 2009 Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) scores indicated that 15-year-old students from the US scored in the average range in reading and science, but below average in math.

Happiness as Measured By GDP: Really?

There is no doubt that violent crime in the US is a major problem.  Murder is certainly not a uniquely American act, but as in other things, we Americans excel at it.  The U.S. murder rate is nearly three times the rate that it is in Canada and more than four times the rate that it is in the United Kingdom.

Although I did not make a substantial number of posts in 2012, the traffic to my site doubled.  Throughout 2012 my blog had 35,819 hits from 31,960 unique visitors, accounting for over 46,720 page views.  I had visitors from every state in the US and visits from people from 165 nations around the world.  Visitors from the United States accounted for the vast majority of those hits, but the UK, Canada, India, and Australia also brought in large contingents.

This year the top ranked article was my 2011 post on Conspicuous Consumption and the Peacock’s Tail, which accounted for 50% more hits than this year’s number two ranked article (Brainwaves and Other Brain Measures – the number one post from last year).  The piece on conspicuous consumption, is in my opinion, one of my all time most important pieces.  It addresses our inherent drive to advance one’s social standing while actually going nowhere on the hedonic treadmill.  It delves into the environmental costs of buying into the illusion of consumer materialism and its biological origins (the signaling instinct much like that of the Peacock). The Brainwave piece, also from 2011, compares and contrasts the different measures used to peer into the workings of the brain.

Of my posts published in 2012, only two made it to this year’s top ten list: five were from 2010 and three were published in 2011.  Of those eight from previous years, five were also on the top ten list last year.

My 2012 review and discussion of the Broadway Musical Wicked topped the list of posts actually written in 2012, but it came in third overall this year relative to all other posts.  This article explores the theme that “things are not as they seem.”  I relate the story told in the show to the political and historical manipulation American citizens are subjected to, and it stirs up unpleasant and inconvenient realities that many would prefer remain unknown.

Great interest persists in my post entitled Nonmoral Nature: It is what it is.  This review of Stephen Jay Gould’s most famous article received a number four ranking, down from a number two ranking over the last two years.  I had also reviewed in 2010 a very popular New York Time’s article by Steven Pinker entitled The Moral Instinct.  This article moved down two notches this year, ultimately ranking number five.  My critical article on the Implicit Associations Test ranked number six this year, versus a number four ranking last year.  My 2011 post Where Does Prejudice Come From? ranked number seven this year, down two spots from its ranking in 2011.  One of my all time favorite posts from 2010, Emotion vs. Reason: And the Winner is?  returned to the top ten list this year coming in eighth.   In 2010 it ranked number ten, but it fell off the list last year.  My Hedgehog versus the Fox mindset piece ranked number nine this year, compared to a number ten ranking last year.  Finally, in the number ten slot this year,  is my 2012 article Happiness as Measured by GDP: Really?  This post was perhaps the most important post of the year.

So here is the Top Ten list for 2012.

1. Conspicuous Consumption and the Peacock’s Tail (2011)
2. Brainwaves and Other Brain Measures (2011)
3. Wicked! Things are NOT as they Seem (2012)
4. Non Moral Nature: It is what it is (2010)
5. Moral Instinct  (2010)
6. IAT: Questions of Reliability and Validity  (2010)
7. Where Does Prejudice Come From?  (2011)
8. Emotion vs. Reason: And the Winner is? (2010)
9. Are you a Hedgehog or a Fox?  (2010)
10. Happiness as Measured by GDP: Really? (2012)

Again this year, the top ten articles represent the foundational issues that have driven me in my quest to understand how people think.   This cross section of my work is, in fact, a good starting point for those who are new to my blog.  There are several other 2012 posts that ranked outside the top ten; regardless, I believe they are important.  These other posts include:

• So Your Partner Drives You Crazy? You’re Not Alone. Here’s Why
• Freud: In Some Ways He Was Right
• The Meek Shall Inherit The Earth

This latter article, The Meek Shall Inherit The Earth, pertains to the microbiome, the collection of an estimated 100 trillion individual organisms thriving in and on your body that account for about three pounds of your total body weight (about the same weight as your brain).  These little creatures play a huge role in your physical and mental well being and we are just beginning to understand the extent of their reach.  Modern medicine in the future, will likely embrace the microbiome as a means of preventing and treating many illnesses (including treating some mental illnesses).

Although, not among the most popular articles this year, my pieces on the pernicious affects of poverty on child development from 2011 warrant ongoing attention.  If we truly wish to halt the cycle of poverty, then we need to devote early and evidenced based intervention services for children and families living in poverty.  As it turns out, poverty is a neurotoxin.  Knowing the information in this series should motivate us, as a society, to truly evaluate our current political and economic policies.

• Parenting May Matter: For Infants and the Economically Deprived  

• The Effects of Poverty on Brain Development  

• The Economic, Neurobiological, and Behavioral Implications of Poverty  

• Halting the negative Feedback Loop of Poverty  

• Poverty Preventing Preschools  

• Poverty is a Neurotoxin  

The bottom line:

The human brain, no matter how remarkable, is flawed in two fundamental ways.  First, the proclivities toward patternicity (pareidolia), hyperactive agency detection, and superstition, although once adaptive mechanisms, now lead to many errors of thought.  Since the age of enlightenment, when human kind developed the scientific method, we have exponentially expanded our knowledge base regarding the workings of the world and the universe.  These leaps of knowledge have rendered those error prone proclivities unessential for survival.  Regardless, they have remained a dominant cognitive force.  Although our intuition and rapid cognitions have sustained us, and in some ways still do, the subsequent everyday illusions impede us in important ways.

Secondly, we are prone to a multitude of cognitive biases that diminish and narrow our capacity to truly understand the world. Time after time I have written of the dangers of ideology with regard to its capacity to blindfold its disciples.  Often those blindfolds are absolutely essential to sustain the ideology.  And this is dangerous when truths and facts are denied or innocents are subjugated or brutalized.  As I discussed in Spinoza’s Conjecture:

 

“We all look at the world through our personal lenses of experience.  Our experiences shape our understanding of the world, and ultimately our understanding of [it], then filters what we take in.  The end result is that we may reject or ignore new and important information simply because it does not conform to our previously held beliefs.

Because of these innate tendencies, we must make additional effort to step away from what we believe to be true in order to discover the truth.

The year 2011 proved to be a challenging year.  A number of serious health issues in close family members took center stage.  The frequency of my posts declined in part due to these important distractions but other factors also played a major role.  Although I published fewer articles, the number of visits to my blog increased substantially.

Over the course of the year, I had 18,305 hits at my website by 15,167 unique visitors, accounting for over 25,000 page views.  I had visitors from every state in the Union and visits from people from 140 nations around the world.  Visitors from the United States accounted for the vast majority of those hits, but the UK, Canada, and Australia also brought in a large contingent of visitors.

One article in particular far outpaced all other posts.  My post on Brain Waves and Other Brain Measures accounted for as many visits as the next three most popular posts combined.  Of my posts published in 2011, only four made it to this year’s top ten list.  The other six were published in 2010.  Of those six from 2010, four were also on the top ten list last year.

Great interest persisted in my post entitled Nonmoral Nature: It is what it is.  This review of Stephen Jay Gould’s most famous article sustained a number two ranking for a second straight year.  I had also reviewed in 2010 a very popular New York Time’s article by Steven Pinker entitled The Moral Instinct.  This article moved up a notch this year, ultimately ranking number three.  My critical article on the Implicit Associations Test ranked number four this year, versus a number six ranking last year.  And my Hedgehog versus the Fox mindset piece ranked number ten this year, compared to a number seven ranking last year.

So here is the Top Ten list for 2011.

1. Brainwaves and Other Brain Measures (2011)
2. Non Moral Nature: It is what it is (2010)
3. Moral Instinct  (2010)
4. IAT: Questions of Reliability and Validity  (2010)
5. Where Does Prejudice Come From?  (2011)
6. Cognitive Conservatism, Moral Relativism, Bias, and Human Flourishing  (2011)
7. What Plato, Descartes, and Kant Got Wrong: Reason Does Not Rule.  (2010)
8. Intuitive Thought  (2010)
9. Effects of Low SES on Brain Development  (2011)
10. Are you a Hedgehog or a Fox?  (2010)

It’s interesting to me that this list includes the very foundational issues that have driven me in my quest.  And each was posted with great personal satisfaction.   This encompassing cross section of my work is, in fact, a good starting point for those who are new to my blog.  There are several popular 2011 posts that ranked outside the top ten but ranked highly relative to other posts published in 2011.  These other posts include:

• Tribal Moral Community
• Schadenfreude
• Narrative Fallacy
• What not to say to someone with cancer: And what helps
• Parenting Style May Matter for Infants & the Economically Deprived
• Narrative Fallacy: A “Sign” of Cognitive Maturation

One article I published late in 2011 has attracted significant attention.   I believe that it is perhaps one of the most important posts I’ve written.  As I was writing this retrospective, Conspicuous Consumption and the Peacock’s Tail was far outpacing all other posts.

The most emotional and personally relevant articles pertained to significant problems in healthcare in the United States and my wife’s battle with breast cancer.  These articles include: (a) What not to say to someone with cancer: And what helps; (b) Up and Ever Onward: My Wife’s Battle With Cancer; (c) Cancer, Aging, & Healthcare: America, We Have a Problem; (d) We’re Number 37! USA USA USA!; and (e) Tears of Strength in Cancer’s Wake.  The latter pertains to perhaps the proudest parental moment of my life.

Another very important issue that I wrote a fair amount about includes the pernicious affect of poverty on child development.  Clicking here takes you to a page that lists all of the articles on this topic.  Knowing the information in this series should motivate us, as a society, to truly evaluate our current political and economic policies.

One of my favorite articles tackled my long standing curiosity about the geology of the place I live.  The article itself did not get a lot of attention, but I sure loved writing it.

This two-year journey, thus far has resulted in perhaps unparalleled personal and intellectual growth.  It has changed the way I look at life, the world around me, and my fellow human beings.   It is my sincerest hope that those who have seen fit to read some of my material have experienced shifts of perception or at least a modicum of enlightenment.

The bottom line:

The human brain, no matter how remarkable, is flawed in two fundamental ways.  First, the proclivities toward patternicity (pareidolia), hyperactive agency detection, and superstition, although once adaptive mechanisms, now lead to many errors of thought.  Since the age of enlightenment, when human kind developed the scientific method, we have exponentially expanded our knowledge base regarding the workings of the world and the universe.  These leaps of knowledge have rendered those error prone proclivities unessential for survival.  Regardless, they have remained a dominant cognitive force.  Although our intuition and rapid cognitions have sustained us, and in some ways still do, the subsequent everyday illusions impede us in important ways.

Secondly, we are prone to a multitude of cognitive biases that diminish and narrow our capacity to truly understand the world. Time after time I have written of the dangers of ideology with regard to its capacity to blindfold its disciples.  Often those blindfolds are absolutely essential to sustain the ideology.  And this is dangerous when truths and facts are denied or innocents are subjugated or brutalized.  As I discussed in Spinoza’s Conjecture:

“We all look at the world through our personal lenses of experience.  Our experiences shape our understanding of the world, and ultimately our understanding of [it], then filters what we take in.  The end result is that we may reject or ignore new and important information simply because it does not conform to our previously held beliefs.

Because of these innate tendencies, we must make additional effort in order to discover the truth.

Mahatma Gandhi once said that Poverty is the worst form of violence.  At the very least it appears to be a neurotoxin.  Evidence continues to build a solid case for the notion that poverty itself is self-propagating and that the mechanism of this replication takes place in the neuro-anatomy of the innocent children reared in environmental deprivation.

In my article titled The Effects of Low SES on Brain Development I review an article that provides clear quantitative data that indicates that children raised in low SES environments have diminished brain activity relative to their more affluent peers.  The impact of low SES on brain activity was so profound that the brains of these poor kids were comparable to individuals who had had actual physical brain damage.  This data gathered through EEG is a non-specific measure that provides no clear understanding of what underlies this diminished functioning.  In other words, it evidences diminished brain activity, but it does not specifically identify what has occurred in the brain that is responsible for these differences.

Jamie Hanson and colleagues from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Harvard University published a paper titled Association Between Income and the Hippocampus in the peer reviewed on-line journal PLoS ONE that points to one possible culprit.  Their study shows in a measurable way, how poverty actually hinders growth of the hippocampus, a very important brain region associated with learning and memory.

In non-human animal studies, it has been shown that environmental enrichment is associated with “greater dendritic branching and wider dendritic fields; increased astrocyte number and size, and improved synaptic transmission in portions of the hippocampus” (Hanson et. al. 2011).  This essentially means that environmental enrichment enhances the density and functioning capacity of the hippocampus.  In humans, parental nurturance, contact, and environmental stimulation has been associated with improved performance on tasks (long-term memory formation) greatly influenced by the hippocampus. On the flip side, it has also been demonstrated that stress, inadequate environmental nurturance and low stimulation have the opposite affect (thinning hippocapmal density).

Hanson et. al., (2011) hypothesized that hippocampus density would be positively related to gradients in parental income.  Affluent children would evidence more hippocampal density (associated with better learning, memory, emotional control) while their low income counterparts would evidence diminished levels of density.  They used datea from MRI imaging studies to measure the actual hippocampal gray matter density in a large cross section of children (ages 4-18 years old) across the United States.  They also collected data on the income and education level of each participant’s parents.  As a control measure, they also quantified the whole-brain volume and the density of the amygdala, a brain region that does not vary as a function of environmental perturbations or enrichment.   These latter variables were important because they assist in ruling out brain size variation associated with other confounding variables.  They hypothesized that these latter measures would not vary associated with income.

The top left brain slice shows a sagittal brain slice with the hippocampus highlighted in yellow and the amygdala in turquoise, while the top right brain image shows an axial slice (with the hippocampus again highlighted in yellow and the amygdala in turquoise). The bottom left brain picture shows a coronal slice with the amygdala in turquoise and the hippocampus in yellow.

Their measures confirmed each of their hypotheses.  Amygdala and whole brain volume did not vary associated with parental income but hippocampal density did.  Those with parents at the lower end of the income spectrum evidenced lower hippocampal density than those children from more affluent families.  They wrote that “taken together, these findings suggest that differences in the hippocampus, perhaps due to stress tied to growing up in poverty, might partially explain differences in long-term memory, learning, control of endocrine functions, and modulation of emotional behavior” (Hanson, 2011).

The authors carefully noted that this correlation is not necessarily indicative of causation – and that more specific longitudinal measures along with direct measures of cognitive functioning, environmental stress,  and stimulation are necessary to truly understand the association between income and these neurobiological outcomes.  But they also warned that the data set was limited to children unaffected by mental health issues or low intelligence.  As such, the data set likely underestimates the actual hippocampal volume variation because children at the lower end of the income spectrum have disproportionately high levels of these mental health and low intelligence issues.

These results confirm and fit with a growing and already substantial set of findings that implicate poverty as a neurotoxin that causes a self sustaining feedback loop.  Poverty seems to weaken the foundation on which fundamental skills and capabilities are built that ultimately facilitate adaptive functioning and positive societal contributions.  A weak foundation hinders such capacities.

I have previously posted articles titled Halting the Negative Feedback Loop of Poverty: Early Intervention is the Key, Poverty Preventing Preschool Programs: Fade-Out, Grit, and the Rich get Richer, and The Economic, Neurobiological, and Behavioral Implications of Poverty.  In these articles I review various other studies that address this issue, but I also highlight the steps that can be taken to remediate the problem.  There really is not much question about the needed steps we as a society should take.    A recent series of articles published in the UK’s Lancet, drives this point home!

In one particular article, titled Strategies for reducing inequalities and improving developmental outcomes for young children in low-income and middle-income countries, the authors noted that:

“A conservative estimate of the returns to investment in early child development is illustrated by the effects of improving one component, preschool attendance. Achieving enrolment rates of 25% per country in 1 year would result in a benefit of US$10·6 billion and achieving 50% preschool enrolment could have a benefit of more than $33 billion (in terms of the present discounted value of future labour market productivity) with a benefit-to-cost ratio of 17·6. Incorporating improved nutrition and parenting programmes would result in a larger gain.”

The monetary value alone seems sufficient to motivate implementation.  For each dollar spent on quality preschool programs, we ultimately gain up to $17.60 in labor market productivity alone.  This does not account for the decreased expenditures on special education, incarceration, and other social safety net programs.  Quality preschool programing has been shown to increase high school graduation rates and home ownership rates.  If we as a society, are truly driven to promote human flourishing, equal opportunity for all, and a level playing field, then we must, I argue, take action with regard to providing universal access to quality preschool programs particularly for poor children.  What I propose is not a hand-out, but a fiscally responsible hand-up that benefits each and every one of us.

References:

Engle, P., L., Fernald, L. CH., Alderman, H., Behrman, J., O’Gara, C.,  Yousafzai A.,  de Mello M. C., Hidrobo, M.,  Ulkuer, N., Ertem, I., Iltus, S., The Global Child Development Steering Group. (2011).  Strategies for reducing inequalities and improving developmental outcomes for young children in low-income and middle-income countries. The Lancet, Early Online Publication, 23 September 2011. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(11)60889-1

Hanson, J.L., Chandra, A., Wolfe, B. L., Pollak, S.D., (2011).  Association between Income and the Hippocampus. PLoS ONE 6(5): e18712. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0018712