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The Impact of Intergenerational Head Start Participation on Success Measures Among Adolescent Children

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Abstract

This study examines the influence of intergenerational Head Start participation on success outcomes among adolescent children of mother-adolescent pairs (N = 1,251). Data come from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY79) and the National Longitudinal Survey's Child-Mother (NLSCM) files. Of 290 adolescents who participated in Head Start as children, one-third (n = 97) had mothers who had also participated in Head Start when they were children. Graduates of Head Start appear roughly comparable to other adolescents in regard to highest grade completed, a sense of mastery, perceived health, and level of depressive symptoms. They do not attain the levels of achievements as other adolescents in regard to reading comprehension and years living above the poverty level.

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  1. Yeshiva University, 2495 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY, 10033-3299

    Richard K. Caputo

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Caputo, R.K. The Impact of Intergenerational Head Start Participation on Success Measures Among Adolescent Children. Journal of Family and Economic Issues 25, 199–223 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1023/B:JEEI.0000023638.62708.1f

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