Place-Based and Person-Based Investment in Children and Families

• In Event: 40425 - Place and Inequality

Abstract

Public policy investments in children and families frequently use people- or place-based approaches. However, it is unclear how strongly related these two forms of investment are, and how they may work together to either offset or reinforce the inequality of financial resources and support available to families with children. In this project, we examine both place-based and person-based governmental investments in U.S. children overtime, between 1997 to 2019 using two primary sources of data—the State-by-State Spending on Kids dataset and the Federal Place-Based Policy dataset. We examine whether there is a correspondence in these two types of funding streams, whereby more or less funding accrues in states with more or less robust safety-nets via a process of cumulative advantage or progressive investment. We also link data on these combined investments with data from the Current Population Survey to estimate effects on the economic well-being of families with children.

Authors

• Alexandra Cooperstock, Brown University

• Margot Jackson, Brown University

• Emily Parker, Rutgers University-New Brunswick

• Laura M. Tach, Cornell University