IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/socmed/v112y2014icp30-38.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Impacts of Child Development Accounts on maternal depressive symptoms: Evidence from a randomized statewide policy experiment

Author

Listed:
  • Huang, Jin
  • Sherraden, Michael
  • Purnell, Jason Q.

Abstract

This study examines the impact of Child Development Accounts (CDAs)—asset-building accounts created for children at birth—on the depressive symptoms of mothers in a statewide randomized experiment conducted in the United States. The experiment identified the primary caregivers of children born in Oklahoma during 2007, and 2704 of the caregivers completed a baseline interview before random assignment to the treatment (n = 1358) or the control group (n = 1346). To treatment participants, the experiment offered CDAs built on the existing Oklahoma 529 College Savings Plan. The baseline and follow-up surveys measured the participants' depressive symptoms with a shortened version of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D). In models that control for baseline CES-D scores, the mean follow-up score of treatment mothers is .17 lower than that of control mothers (p < .05). Findings suggest that CDAs have a greater impact among subsamples that reported lower income or lower education. Although designed as an economic intervention for children, CDAs may improve parents' psychological well-being. Findings also suggest that CDAs' impacts on maternal depressive symptoms may be partially mediated through children's social–emotional development.

Suggested Citation

  • Huang, Jin & Sherraden, Michael & Purnell, Jason Q., 2014. "Impacts of Child Development Accounts on maternal depressive symptoms: Evidence from a randomized statewide policy experiment," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 30-38.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:112:y:2014:i:c:p:30-38
    DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2014.04.023
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277953614002548
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.socscimed.2014.04.023?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Huang, Jin & Guo, Baorong & Kim, Youngmi & Sherraden, Michael, 2010. "Parental income, assets, borrowing constraints and children's post-secondary education," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 32(4), pages 585-594, April.
    2. Yunju Nam & Youngmi Kim & Margaret Clancy & Robert Zager & Michael Sherraden, 2013. "Do Child Development Accounts Promote Account Holding, Saving, and Asset Accumulation for Children's Future? Evidence from a Statewide Randomized Experiment," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 32(1), pages 6-33, January.
    3. Kim, Youngmi & Sherraden, Michael, 2011. "Do parental assets matter for children's educational attainment?: Evidence from mediation tests," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 33(6), pages 969-979, June.
    4. Meyer, Jeff & Masa, Rainier D. & Zimmerman, Jamie M., 2010. "Overview of Child Development Accounts in developing countries," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 32(11), pages 1561-1569, November.
    5. Jin Huang & Yunju Nam & Margaret S. Sherraden, 2013. "Financial Knowledge and Child Development Account Policy: A Test of Financial Capability," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(1), pages 1-26, April.
    6. Williams Shanks, Trina R. & Kim, Youngmi & Loke, Vernon & Destin, Mesmin, 2010. "Assets and child well-being in developed countries," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 32(11), pages 1488-1496, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Haotian Zheng & Elizabeth Harris & William Elliott & Megan O’Brien, 2023. "The Role of Children’s Savings Accounts in Promoting Savings for College Among Welfare Recipients: The Case of Harold Alfond College Challenge (HACC)," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 44(2), pages 285-296, June.
    2. Jin Huang & Margaret S. Sherraden & Michael Sherraden & Lissa Johnson, 2022. "Experimental Effects of Child Development Accounts on Financial Capability of Young Mothers," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 43(1), pages 36-50, March.
    3. Fang, Shu & Huang, Jin & Curley, Jami & Birkenmaier, Julie, 2018. "Family assets, parental expectations, and children educational performance: An empirical examination from China," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 60-68.
    4. Mary Kopriva, 2023. "Universal Cash Transfer Impacts on Maternal and Infant Health," Working Papers 2023-02, University of Alaska Anchorage, Department of Economics.
    5. Blumenthal, Anne & Shanks, Trina R., 2019. "Communication matters: A long-term follow-up study of child savings account program participation," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 100(C), pages 136-146.
    6. Yunju Nam & Elizabeth Hole & Michael Sherraden & Margaret M. Clancy, 2018. "Program Knowledge and Racial Disparities in Savings Outcomes in a Child Development Account Experiment," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 39(1), pages 145-162, March.
    7. Rauscher, Emily & Elliott, William & O'Brien, Megan & Callahan, Jason & Steensma, Joe, 2017. "Examining the relationship between parental educational expectations and a community-based children's savings account program," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 96-107.
    8. Ray Boshara & William R. Emmons, 2015. "A Balance Sheet Perspective on Financial Success: Why Starting Early Matters," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 49(1), pages 267-298, March.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Fang, Shu & Huang, Jin & Curley, Jami & Birkenmaier, Julie, 2018. "Family assets, parental expectations, and children educational performance: An empirical examination from China," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 60-68.
    2. Fang, Shu & Huang, Jin & Wu, Shiyou & Jin, Minchao & Kim, Youngmi & Henrichsen, Courtney, 2020. "Family assets, parental expectation, and child educational achievement in China: A validation of mediation analyses," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 112(C).
    3. Jin Huang & Yunju Nam & Michael Sherraden & Margaret Clancy, 2015. "Financial Capability and Asset Accumulation for Children's Education: Evidence from an Experiment of Child Development Accounts," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 49(1), pages 127-155, March.
    4. Chen, Yongjin & Zhi, Kuiyun & Huang, Jin, 2021. "Family Savings and Children’s Non-Cognitive and Cognitive Development: Evidence from China," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 130(C).
    5. Kim, Youngmi & Huang, Jin & Sherraden, Michael & Clancy, Margaret, 2017. "Child Development Accounts, parental savings, and parental educational expectations: A path model," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 79(C), pages 20-28.
    6. Elliott, William, 2013. "The effects of economic instability on children's educational outcomes," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 35(3), pages 461-471.
    7. Huang, Jin, 2013. "Intergenerational transmission of educational attainment: The role of household assets," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 33(C), pages 112-123.
    8. Beverly, Sondra G. & Kim, Youngmi & Sherraden, Michael & Nam, Yunju & Clancy, Margaret, 2015. "Can Child Development Accounts be inclusive? Early evidence from a statewide experiment," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 92-104.
    9. Oyserman, Daphna, 2013. "Not just any path: Implications of identity-based motivation for disparities in school outcomes," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 33(C), pages 179-190.
    10. Chowa, Gina A.N. & Masa, Rainier D. & Tucker, Jenna, 2013. "The effects of parental involvement on academic performance of Ghanaian youth: Testing measurement and relationships using structural equation modeling," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 35(12), pages 2020-2030.
    11. Kim, Youngmi & Sherraden, Michael, 2011. "Do parental assets matter for children's educational attainment?: Evidence from mediation tests," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 33(6), pages 969-979, June.
    12. Yunju Nam & Elizabeth Hole & Michael Sherraden & Margaret M. Clancy, 2018. "Program Knowledge and Racial Disparities in Savings Outcomes in a Child Development Account Experiment," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 39(1), pages 145-162, March.
    13. Ansong, David & Wu, Shiyou & Chowa, Gina A.N., 2015. "The role of child and parent savings in promoting expectations for university education among middle school students in Ghana: A propensity score analysis," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 265-273.
    14. Julie Birkenmaier & Brandy Maynard & Youngmi Kim, 2022. "Interventions designed to improve financial capability: A systematic review," Campbell Systematic Reviews, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 18(1), March.
    15. Chowa, Gina A.N. & Masa, Rainier D. & Wretman, Christopher J. & Ansong, David, 2013. "The impact of household possessions on youth's academic achievement in the Ghana Youthsave experiment: A propensity score analysis," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 33(C), pages 69-81.
    16. Youngmi Kim & Jin Huang & Michael Sherraden, 2014. "What Shapes Assessment of Ability to Pay for Children's College Education?," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 48(3), pages 486-514, October.
    17. Elliott, William & Destin, Mesmin & Friedline, Terri, 2011. "Taking stock of ten years of research on the relationship between assets and children's educational outcomes: Implications for theory, policy and intervention," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 33(11), pages 2312-2328.
    18. Fu, Yao & Jordan, Lucy P. & Zhou, Xiaochen & Chow, Cheng & Fang, Lue, 2023. "Longitudinal associations between parental migration and children's psychological well-being in Southeast Asia: The roles of caregivers' mental health and caregiving quality," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 320(C).
    19. Michelle Maroto, 2018. "Saving, Sharing, or Spending? The Wealth Consequences of Raising Children," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 55(6), pages 2257-2282, December.
    20. Shamsa Kanwal & Abdul Hameed Pitafi & Muhammad Yousaf Malik & Naseer Abbas Khan & Rao Muhammad Rashid, 2020. "Local Pakistani Citizens’ Benefits and Attitudes Toward China–Pakistan Economic Corridor Projects," SAGE Open, , vol. 10(3), pages 21582440209, July.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:112:y:2014:i:c:p:30-38. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/315/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.