Effects of Child Development Accounts on Adolescent Behavior Problems: Evidence from a Longitudinal, Randomized Policy Experiment

Abstract

Theory and empirical examination have shown ways in which households’ asset building for children may affect child well-being, including behavioral and emotional health. Previous research found that Child Development Accounts (CDAs), a universal and lifelong asset-building policy designed to encourage society and families to accumulate assets for children, have positive effects on social-emotional development at around 4 years of age. Using data from a unique longitudinal experiment of the CDA policy in the United States, this study examined the impacts of CDAs on adolescent behavior problems. Adolescent behavior problems were indicated by eight items from a 28-item Behavior Problems Index, focusing on children’s anxiety and disobedience. In the pre-COVID sample (n = 676), results from the regression analysis show that the sum score of child behavior problems is about 0.12 standard deviations higher than that of counterparts in the control group, indicating less frequent behavior problems among children in the treatment group. Regression analyses on two latent measures of anxiety and disobedience showed that CDAs primarily affected children’s anxiety. However, there were no statistically significant differences in the full sample (N = 1712); this could be related to the data-collection disruptions caused by the COVID pandemic. This study provides the first longitudinal follow-up evidence on the effects of CDAs on adolescent behavior problems. The findings show that universal asset building for adolescents reduces behavior problems. Policy implications are discussed.