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Social Policy: Targeting programmes effectively

Nature Human Behaviour volume 1, Article number: 0019 (2017) Cite this article

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A study now shows that 20% of the population accounts for 60–80% of several adult social ills. Outcomes for this group can be accurately predicted from as early as age 3 years, using a small set of indicators of disadvantage. This finding supports policies that target children from disadvantaged families.

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Figure 1: Net present value of the main components of the life-cycle benefit–cost analysis of the Carolina Abecedarian Project (ABC) and the Carolina Approach to Responsive Education (CARE).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. USA; Henry Schultz Distinguished Service Professor in the Department of Economics at the University of Chicago, James J. Heckman is Director of the Center for the Economics of Human Development, 5750 S. Woodlawn Avenue, Chicago, Illinois 60637, 1126 East 59th Street, Chicago, Illinois 60637, USA; and Research Professor at the American Bar Foundation, 750 North Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60611-4403.,

    James J. Heckman

  2. Henry Schultz Distinguished Service Professor in the Department of Economics at the University of Chicago, 1126 East 59th Street, Chicago, Illinois 60637, USA,

    James J. Heckman

  3. Jorge Luís García is a PhD candidate in the Department of Economics at the University of Chicago, and a Senior Research Assistant at the Center for the Economics of Human Development.,

    Jorge Luís García

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  1. James J. Heckman
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  2. Jorge Luís García
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Correspondence to James J. Heckman.

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Heckman, J., García, J. Social Policy: Targeting programmes effectively. Nat Hum Behav 1, 0019 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-016-0019

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