Study shows that giving cash to low-income mothers has a positive impact on babies’ brain development

There has been a flurry of discussion in news outlets and social media in response to research findings published this month by Troller-Renfree et al. in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS). The Child Tax Credit that lifted more than 30% of US children from poverty in the past year expired in December 2021, so interest is high in studies that connect unconditional monetary support for families to better nutrition, less parent stress, or other benefits to infants. Troller-Renfree et al. were able to demonstrate “the causal impact of a poverty reduction intervention on early childhood brain activity” using EEG data from the ongoing Baby’s First Years (BFY) Study, a randomized control trial that began in 2018. They were able to show that giving “predictable, monthly unconditional cash transfers” to mothers experiencing poverty in the first year of their children’s lives has a positive effect on infant brain activity. In other words, more resources led to positive experiences for the babies, and their brain activity adapted to those experiences, unlike babies whose parents received a far smaller cash gift. The authors note several limitations to keep in mind when interpreting their results, including the fact that “the extent to which individual differences in infant brain activity are stable over time is not yet known.”

BFY includes 1,000 eligible mothers who were recruited in hospitals at the time of their child’s birth across four sites — New York City, greater New Orleans, the Twin Cities, and the Omaha metropolitan area. Enrolled mothers, who are mostly Black or Hispanic, receive a monthly unconditional cash gift of either $333/month or $20/month for the first 52 months of their child’s life. Delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the study is ongoing and will continue until the children’s fourth birthdays. Quantitative data collection points are: just after birth, and 12, 24, 36, and 48 months of age. Data Sharing for Demographic Research (DSDR) currently distributes Baby’s First Years (BFY), New York City, New Orleans, Omaha, and Twin Cities, 2018-2019 (ICPSR 37871) containing anonymized data from birth. Age 1 data will be available next month. DSDR eventually will receive all follow-up data, as well as the EEG data used in the PNAS article. Those interested in replicating the analysis in the PNAS article can also access the supplemental syntax and analytic data files.