识别幼年期行为的驱动因素：来自一项纵向田野实验的证据

中文摘要

我们考察儿童在3—5岁时发展形成的技能如何影响其童年中期和青春期的学业结果。我们发现，这些技能可归为三个不同的因子——认知技能、执行功能和经济偏好。重要的是，这三个因子均能预测后续的学业结果。早期执行功能技能和认知得分与未来的行为模式及其他关键学生结果相关，而经济偏好具有独立影响：幼儿期缺乏耐心的儿童受到的纪律处分转介更多。最后，随机分配进入学前教育通过改变认知技能和执行功能影响成绩和纪律处分转介。

Abstract

We investigate how skills developed when children are 3–5 years old drive schooling outcomes in middle childhood and adolescence. We find that skills map onto three distinct factors—cognitive skills, executive functions, and economic preferences. Importantly, each of the three factors predict later schooling outcomes. While early executive function skills and cognitive scores are linked to future behavioral patterns and other key student outcomes, economic preferences have an independent effect: children who are impatient in early childhood have more disciplinary referrals. Finally, random assignment to preschool impacts grades and disciplinary referrals through changes to cognitive skills and executive functions.