Early Life Adversity and Children's Competence Development: Evidence from the Mannheim Study of Children at Risk

33 Pages Posted: 23 Feb 2013

See all articles by Dorothea Blomeyer

Dorothea Blomeyer

ZI Mannheim

Katja Coneus

ZEW – Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research

Manfred Laucht

ZI Mannheim; University of Potsdam

Friedhelm Pfeiffer

Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW); University of Mannheim - Department of Economics; IZA Institute of Labor Economics

Abstract

This paper investigates the role of early life adversity and home resources in terms of competence formation and school achievement based on data from an epidemiological cohort study following 364 children from birth to adolescence. Results indicate that organic and psychosocial risks present in early life as well as the socio-emotional home environment are significant predictors for the formation of competencies. Competencies acquired at preschool age predict achievement at school age. A counterfactual analysis is performed to assess trade-offs in the timing of interventions in the early life cycle.

Keywords: initial risk matrix, socio-emotional and economic home resources, intelligence, persistence, peer relationship, school achievement

JEL Classification: D87, I12, I21, J13

Suggested Citation

Blomeyer, Dorothea and Coneus, Katja and Laucht, Manfred and Pfeiffer, Friedhelm, Early Life Adversity and Children's Competence Development: Evidence from the Mannheim Study of Children at Risk. IZA Discussion Paper No. 7216, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2223143 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2223143

Dorothea Blomeyer (Contact Author)

ZI Mannheim ( email )

Postfach 12 21 20
68072 Mannheim
Germany

Katja Coneus

ZEW – Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research ( email )

P.O. Box 10 34 43
L 7,1
D-68034 Mannheim, 68034
Germany

Manfred Laucht

ZI Mannheim ( email )

Postfach 12 21 20
68072 Mannheim
Germany

University of Potsdam

August-Bebel Strasse 89
Potsdam, 14482
Germany

Friedhelm Pfeiffer

Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) ( email )

D-68161 Mannheim
Germany
++49 (0)621/1235-150 (Phone)
++49 (0)621/1235-225 (Fax)

University of Mannheim - Department of Economics

D-68131 Mannheim
Germany

IZA Institute of Labor Economics

P.O. Box 7240
Bonn, D-53072
Germany

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