Center for Child & Family Policy | Duke University

Family Connects, a program in which nurses conduct home visits for newborns and their families, is linked to substantial reductions in child maltreatment investigations in children’s earliest years, according to new research from Duke University.

Program participants had 44 percent lower rates of child maltreatment investigations during children’s first 24 months of life, compared with parents who did not receive the program, researchers found.

“We now have evidence from a rigorous evaluation that the Family Connects program can reduce the community rate of early child abuse investigations,” said lead author Kenneth Dodge. “Supporting families with newborns is key to child and family well-being.”

For more information on the study and key findings, access the news release or download the full report.

Economist Philip J. Cook, a professor in Duke University’s Sanford School of Public Policy and Center faculty fellow, has been awarded the 2020 Stockholm Prize in Criminology for his decades of research on gun violence and its wide-ranging effects on society.

Cook and co-winner Franklin Zimring, the William G. Simon Professor of Law at the University of California at Berkeley, will share the prize: $1.5 million Swedish kroner, or about $150,000. The prize will be awarded by the Queen of Sweden in a ceremony in Stockholm June 10, 2020.

An article in the Charlotte Parent explores a popular topic of whether parents have a favorite child — “a topic worth exploring because of the deep effects favoritism can have on both parents and children.” In the article, Jennifer Lansford explains there are “no really good empirical studies on this issue.”

“She suggests that the ‘strong social preference not to have a favorite’ may cause some parents to feel too embarrassed or guilty to admit they have a favorite, while other parents might have difficulty interpreting the question itself: Does having a ‘favorite’ mean you actually “love” one child more than your other(s)? Or does it simply mean that you treat your children differently for any number of reasons?”

In response to a reader-submitted ‘Chronquiry,’ a recent article in Duke University’s student newspaper reveals The Duke Endowment as Duke University’s largest donor. Since 1924, the Endowment has given $1.6 billion. Susan McConnell, director of the higher education program for The Duke Endowment, explains that Duke receives grants in four areas: education, health care, rural churches and childcare. In the childcare program, she says “the Endowment has partnered with the Center for Child and Family Policy, contributing $7.4 million since 2000 to collaborate on evidence-based programs. An additional $13 million in grants has gone toward Durham Connects, a community-wide nursing home visiting program for parents of newborns.”

Moving children up out of poverty will require more than “moving to opportunity,” explains Lisa Gennetian and Kathy Hirsh-Pasek, of Temple University, in a recent blog post for Brookings Institution. In order “to genuinely alter children’s prospects,” the authors call for “a multi-pronged, coordinated set of policy investments that enable each child to fully reach her potential.” 

Research studies about the impacts of new laws to end unpredictable work scheduling are starting to emerge. A Vox article points to Anna Gassman-Pines‘ study of parents of young children in Emeryville, CA, as an example. As part of the study, Gassman-Pines, along with Elizabeth Ananat of Columbia University, and their colleagues surveyed a group of working parents before and after the 2017 Fair Workweek Ordinance was enacted. Workers at covered companies reported that their schedules improved — with a 35 percent reduction in instability (such as cancelled shifts or changed hours) — as did their sleep quality and levels of stress, compared to no change for workers in the uncovered companies.

Beth Gifford was quoted in Cronkite News about her study, recently published in JAMA Network Open, that found children of incarcerated parents are prone to psychological effects that may linger into adulthood.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration has awarded a five-year grant in support of a project that aims to build systems that foster healthy development and wellness for all young children in Durham County. The Responsive Early Access for Durham’s Young Children (READY) project will be evaluated by the Center for Child and Family Policy. Nicole Lawrence and Liz Snyder-Fickler will conduct the evaluation. Other organizations partnering on the project include the Center for Child and Family Health, Child Care Services Association, Duke Children’s Primary Care, Exchange Family Center and Families Moving Forward.

A 2017 study from the Center for Child and Family Policy found a pilot program reduced the number of elementary students who were frequently absent by 10 percent. The Early Truancy Prevention Program (ETPP), developed by Philip Cook, Kenneth Dodge, Elizabeth Gifford and Amy Schulting, is among the first programs for primary school students that has been effective in improving absenteeism rates.

In a new companion paper to the study, the authors provide a more detailed description of the program and its key components. They also offer more information about how the program was developed and share survey results from the teachers who participated in the program.

This resource is intended to provide analysis and support to education systems for effective implementation of the ETPP in schools. The paper is meant for education policymakers and practitioners.