RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 One Step at a Time
JF Journal of Human Resources
JO J Hum Resour
FD University of Wisconsin Press
SP 537
OP 566
DO 10.3368/jhr.54.3.0517-8756R
VO 54
IS 3
A1 Benjamin N. York
A1 Susanna Loeb
A1 Christopher Doss
YR 2019
UL http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/54/3/537.abstract
AB Large systematic differences in young children’s home learning experiences have long-term economic consequences. Many parenting programs place significant demands on parents’ time and inundate parents with information. This study evaluates the effects of READY4K!, an eight-month-long text-messaging intervention for parents of preschoolers that targets the behavioral barriers to engaged parenting. We find that READY4K! increased parental involvement at home and school by 0.15 to 0.29 standard deviations, leading to child gains in early literacy of about 0.11 standard deviations. The results point to the salience of behavioral barriers to parenting and the potential for low-cost interventions to reduce these barriers.