Browse media coverage of the center from major U.S. and international media outlets, explore our scientific materials, and stay up to date with our activities.
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HCDC In The News
2024
2023
Why play? Early games build bonds and brain
February 2, 2023
2022
Princess Kate connects with fellow moms at Harvard University event
December 2, 2022
How caregivers can help build children’s emerging language skills
September 6, 2022
Youth First: Trauma and the brain
April 16, 2022
What is the Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood?
February 23, 2022
A ‘window of opportunity’ we can’t miss
February 15, 2022
5 skills teens need in life — and how to encourage them
January 25, 2022
2021
How do you talk to kids facing trauma after Kentucky’s deadly tornado?
December 15, 2021
Racism in early life can affect long-term health, experts say
December 15, 2021
Growing Community: mind, body, spirit
November 18, 2021
Early Predictors of Long-term Success
October 26, 2021
Biden’s Housing Plan Could Save Millions of Children’s Futures
October 18, 2021
What’s “Mattering” In Young Children and Why Does It Matter?
September 21, 2021
Re-envisioning family focused care and mental well-being
April 1, 2021
Family Stress Is Worsened By COVID, States Study
March 31, 2021
Recovering from the Emotional Challenges of the Pandemic
March 30, 2021
5 Ways To Help Children Reach Their Full Potential
February 13, 2021
6 Things Families Can Do About Toxic Stress
February 12, 2021
Correlation Between Stress & A Child’s Developing Mind
February 9, 2021
The Mentoring Circle: Supportive Relationships Across Generations
January 21, 2021
How to remotivate kids for more distance learning
January 5, 2021
2020
Resilience – Bouncing back?
December 21, 2020
The impact of historical trauma on American Indian health equity
November 27, 2020
Why do we need to be aware that children grieve?
November 17, 2020
The fulcrum can make tomorrow better than today
November 6, 2020
Daunting impacts of child poverty cannot be ignored
October 21, 2020
Resiliency and kindness in the face of 2020
September 24, 2020
Nieman: Study finds young children at risk from maternal depression
September 14, 2020
View ResourceCaregivers of Young Children Need a Different Kind of Mask
September 9, 2020
When COVID-19 Pushes Your Company to Explore New Markets
August 27, 2020
Kids are covid19 heroes too
May 10, 2020
How to Find Resilience During This Difficult Time
March 26, 2020
Are Community Schools the Future of Education Reform?
March 5, 2020
Soft skills, now more than ever
February 24, 2020
2019
‘Baby Brain’: Montgomery foundation’s work featured in documentary
December 18, 2019
Storytime’s Brain-Building Power – First Steps
December 16, 2019
Why These School Districts Serve Children Beginning at Birth
November 22, 2019
Which is better for reading to your toddler: Print or ebooks?
October 30, 2019
What motivation research can teach us about potty training
September 25, 2019
Children Cannot Parent Other Children
June 24, 2019
How to Develop a Greater Sense of Motivation in Students
March 12, 2019
Unlocking the Science of Motivation
March 7, 2019
2018
The enormous cost of toxic stress: Repairing damage to refugee and separated children
July 9, 2018
“When traumatic experiences are imposed on young children, the impact on their bodies and brains can last a lifetime, even if those children cannot consciously remember the events that terrified them,” writes Kathy Hirsh-Pasek, a senior fellow at The Brookings Institution, who submitted this statement on behalf of Center Director Dr. Jack Shonkoff and others.
View ResourcePlatforms for Scalable Learning in the Social Sector
May 10, 2018
The urban design project sneaking puzzles and hopscotch into abandoned lots
April 20, 2018
Story about Frontiers of Innovation project Urban Thinkscape
View Resource2017
Little kids and ‘toxic stress’: we can solve this
October 4, 2017
The Diversity of Play
August 7, 2017
Former Richmond Fellow Lynneth Solis explores the impact play has on the cognitive development of children in Colombia.
View ResourceHow severe, ongoing stress can affect a child’s brain
July 12, 2017
This article discusses the impact of toxic stress on early childhood development, and what some physicians, early-care providers, and community members are doing to identify and provide services to affected children and families.
View ResourceHow poverty affects the brain
July 12, 2017
Using brain imaging, Council Member Charles Nelson studies the impacts of poverty and childhood adversity on children’s development in Bangladesh.
View ResourceWhen is stress good for you?
July 11, 2017
Council Member Bruce McEwen differentiates between good stress, tolerable stress, and toxic stress.
View ResourceResilience: A skill your child really needs to learn (and what you can do to help)
June 13, 2017
In this blog post, Dr. Claire McCarthy shares four factors that help children develop resilience: supportive adult-child relationships, a sense of self-efficacy and perceived control, strong adaptive skills and self-regulatory capacities, and being able to mobilize sources of faith, hope, and cultural traditions.
View ResourceA New Understanding of the Childhood Brain
May 19, 2017
In this episode of a new series of videos from The Atlantic, the impact of early trauma on brain development is explored.
View ResourceThe Decade of the Brain
May 17, 2017
A new series of videos from The Atlantic explores early childhood development by looking at the emergence of early childhood development research and programs.
View ResourceDoes Poverty Change the Way We Think?
May 4, 2017
Rich or poor, quality caregiving may be the key to a child’s healthy brain development according to this BBC podcast featuring National Scientific Council on the Developing Child member Charles Nelson.
View ResourceFirst Impressions: A virtual experience of the first year of life
April 11, 2017
Using virtual reality (VR) technology, the Guardian has created “First Impressions,” which enables viewers to explore how a baby sees the world during the first six months of life. National Scientific Council on the Developing Child member Charles Nelson guides viewers through the 360-degree VR experience, explaining the impact of extreme adversity such as neglect […]
View ResourceInterview with Jack P. Shonkoff, M.D.
April 1, 2017
During a recent visit to Western Australia, Center Director Jack Shonkoff spoke with ABC News about the critical importance of the early years.
View ResourceFewer homeless veterans. More homeless children in state.
January 12, 2017
Although a 2006 10-year plan to eliminate homelessness in Michigan has had success in reducing the number of homeless veterans and chronically homeless individuals, the news is not as good for children and families–and may have actually grown worse. National Scientific Council on the Developing Child member Megan Gunnar explains the impact that the ongoing […]
View Resource2016
Expensive Problems: Researchers Say ‘High Cost’ Adults Can Be Predicted At Age 3
December 12, 2016
This blog post and companion radio show explore a new study that suggests that brain health before age 3 may predict a person’s cost to society around age 40. These costs included health expenses, such as hospital stays and drug prescriptions, as well as welfare benefits, insurance claims, and criminal court and prison costs. Center […]
View ResourceSpecial Report "Our Children: Searching for Solutions"
November 20, 2016
The Detroit Free Press presents a series of stories about growing up in the Motor City and the toll that poverty and violence take on children. The stories examine programs both around the country and in Detroit that might offer solutions to help combat toxic stress. The Center’s materials are quoted throughout, as is a […]
View ResourceLearning Through Play: Education does not stop when recess begins
September 13, 2016
School recess is making something of a comeback, due in part to stronger science backing the importance of play to children’s learning and development. Center Director Jack Shonkoff discusses the cognitive, physical, mental, and social-emotional benefits of play and how “recess” is inaptly named because it’s an important component of school, not a distraction from […]
View ResourceHow Poverty Affects the Brain
August 25, 2016
Growing research shows that poverty and the conditions that often accompany it—violence, excessive noise, chaos at home, pollution, malnutrition, abuse and parents without jobs—can affect the interactions, formation, and pruning of connections in the young brain. Center Director Jack Shonkoff was interviewed for this story and shared insight on how we can use this new […]
View ResourcePediatricians take on new role: Fighting the bigotry and violence that hurts kids
July 18, 2016
This story was in response to the American Academy of Pediatrics’ recent recommendations for pediatricians to confront violence in children’s lives. The AAP is working to identify new approaches to the problem, including education, advocacy, and changes in clinical practice. Center Director Jack Shonkoff was interviewed for the story and shared insight on how toxic […]
View ResourceCan poverty be passed down? A nonprofit tries to break the cycle
July 12, 2016
EMPath’s Intergenerational Mobility Project, a member of the Frontiers of Innovation community, coaches families to equip parents with the skills to navigate their way out of poverty and to help them show their children the way out, too. The story highlights a new report from EMPath about the project and quotes Center Director Jack Shonkoff, […]
View ResourceThe Limits of ‘Grit’
June 21, 2016
Examining Angela Duckworth’s book, “Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance,” and the resulting popular interest in grit as a key to success, this piece calls out the significant limitations of this focus: that grit may be out of reach for some kids who have grown up in poverty or other stressful conditions without the […]
View ResourceFamily Experience with Toxic Stress
June 21, 2016
As part of the Healthy People, Healthy Places – Healthy Beginnings series, Be Well explores the topic of toxic stress and its impact on one Ohio family. Center affiliated faculty member and National Scientific Council on the Developing Child member Charles Nelson is interviewed for the story to help explain what toxic stress is and […]
View ResourceThe Complex Lives of Babies
June 20, 2016
Highlighting ideas and themes from the recently released documentary, “The Beginning of Life,” this article emphasizes the impact that environment and relationships in the first few years of a child’s life have on physical, cognitive, social, and emotional development. The story includes quotes from Center Director Jack Shonkoff and affiliated faculty member and National Scientific […]
View ResourceStress Fractures: A developing brain exposed to a stressful environment can cause a lifetime of pain
June 15, 2016
This story on toxic stress highlights several new programs aimed at preventing and reducing toxic stress for children, including the Best Start for Kids program in King County, Washington State, which is focusing its support on pregnant mothers, educating new families, and caring for children between infancy and five years of age. National Scientific Council […]
View ResourceBringing Brain Science to Early Childhood
May 4, 2016
In this story that highlights the publication of the Center’s newest report, Center Director Jack Shonkoff explains the call for a science-based R&D platform in the early childhood field and the Center’s vision for making breakthrough impacts for children and families, especially those facing adversity.
View ResourceThe brain science behind Britain’s new parenting classes
January 15, 2016
Examining British Prime Minister David Cameron’s recent announcement about the UK’s new policy on parenting classes, the Washington Post spoke with Center Director Jack Shonkoff about the neuroscience cited in the Prime Minister’s speech and how meeting parents’ needs results in meeting children’s needs.
View Resource2015
Grandmother, child rise from trauma with help from Childhaven
December 31, 2015
This story focuses on the work of Childhaven, a therapeutic child care nonprofit in Washington State that is also a member of the Frontiers of Innovation community through the Washington Cluster. Having worked directly with the organization, Director of Innovation Strategies Becky Jacques shares her thoughts about Childhaven’s ongoing innovation and learning.
View Resource#OpportunityRedefined: Interview with Jack P. Shonkoff, Director of the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University
October 26, 2015
In this installment of New Profit’s #OpportunityRedefined series, Center Director Jack Shonkoff talks about what’s needed to achieve breakthrough social change—new strategies that produce bigger impacts and a better understanding of why interventions work – or don’t work – for whom and in what contexts.
View ResourceWhy Netflix’s Parental Leave Policy is Good For Babies
August 5, 2015
Video-streaming company Netflix announced this week that it will offer its employees a year of maternity and paternity leave during the first year after their child’s birth or adoption. Center Director Jack Shonkoff talks with TIME about what this may mean for children, particularly the effects of early child-parent bonds on cognitive, emotional, and social […]
View ResourceReinforcing best practices for parents
August 3, 2015
Renee Van Norman, Ph.D., director of the Pearl Buck Preschool in Oregon, shares the preschool’s experience with the Filming Interactions to Nurture (FIND) video coaching program for parents, which focuses on the concept of “serve and return,” developed by the Center. Norman explains the program’s practical approach and how it uniquely emphasizes parents’ strengths and […]
View ResourceThe Diaper Dilemma
July 21, 2015
Not being able to afford a basic baby necessity like diapers can hurt mothers’ mental health and their ability to parent. This story highlights the work of the New Haven MOMS Partnership, a support network for new mothers and their children and a Frontiers of Innovation member, to address this problem.
View ResourceCan science save abused, neglected kids – and money, too?
June 30, 2015
Washington state is increasingly using current science to guide its policies and services for children and families. This story features the Center’s Frontiers of Innovation initiative, which is led in Washington by the Department of Early Learning and combines the science of brain development with advances in the social and behavioral sciences to design and […]
View ResourceWhat Poverty Does to the Young Brain
June 4, 2015
Poverty can create conditions of toxic stress, which weakens the architecture of the developing brain. This piece features the work of the National Scientific Council on the Developing Child and quotes its science director, Pat Levitt.
View ResourceThe Brain and Biology of Parenting
May 27, 2015
Charlie Rose hosts a round-table discussion about the brain and the biology of parenting. The distinguished panel of researchers includes Center-affiliated faculty member Charles A. Nelson III, who explains how serve and return interaction between caregivers and children plays a fundamental role in building the brain.
View ResourceA Single Denver Mom Learns to Manage Toxic Stress and Tighten Family Bonds
May 22, 2015
This story profiles a Denver, Colorado-based implementation of the FIND project, which uses a video coaching technique to strengthen serve and return interactions between parents and children. FIND was developed by researchers at the University of Oregon and the Oregon Social Learning Center who are members of the Frontiers of Innovation network.
View ResourceGrantee Spotlight: Center on the Developing Child
April 27, 2015
This grantee spotlight from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation provides a brief overview of the Center’s work, with a focus on our science translation and communication efforts.
View ResourceThe Science of Suicide: Researchers Work To Determine Who’s Most At Risk
March 20, 2015
This piece profiles the work of Center-affiliated faculty member Matthew K. Nock, whose lab is developing a test to better predict suicide risk, with a particular focus on adolescents.
View ResourceTake the ACE Quiz – And Learn What It Does and Doesn’t Mean
March 2, 2015
The Adverse Childhood Experiences, or “ACEs,” quiz asks a series of 10 questions (see below) about common traumatic experiences that occur in early life. Since higher numbers of ACEs often correlate to challenges later in life, including higher risk of certain health problems, the quiz is intended as an indicator of how likely a person […]
View ResourceCan Family Secrets Make You Sick?
March 2, 2015
Childhood abuse and neglect can have lasting effects on adult health and executive function. This article from NPR surveys decades of work to determine “what exactly adverse childhood experiences do to the body,” and quotes National Scientific Council on the Developing Child member Megan R. Gunnar.
View ResourceToxic stress in babies and children causes lifelong problems
January 20, 2015
As part of its “Healthy States” initiative, Minnesota Public Radio presents this story on the science of toxic stress and the role early brain development plays in supporting lifelong health. The program begins with a keynote by National Scientific Council on the Developing Child member Megan Gunnar, who emphasizes “the importance of healthy child development […]
View ResourceStarting Early
January 20, 2015
This four-part series from journalist Arielle Levin Becker takes an in-depth look at the effects of severe childhood adversity on mental and physical health. Together, the articles detail how toxic stress impacts the body, the protective effects of a secure relationship with a caregiver, and ways to identify and prevent problems that threaten child well-being. […]
View ResourceThe First Year
January 1, 2015
This article discusses scientific research focused on how supportive relationships with adults shape early brain development. One highlighted study, the Bucharest Early Intervention Project (BEIP), has examined how early childhood neglect impacts brain development as well as how appropriate nurturing can buffer the effects of early deprivation. BEIP was launched by Center-affiliated faculty member Charles […]
View Resource2014
Life After Stress: The Biology Of Trauma And Resilience
November 13, 2014
In this story, reporter Karen Brown profiles ongoing research efforts to understand how trauma affects lifelong mental and physical health. Brown speaks with Center-affiliated faculty member Charles A. Nelson III, who explains how brain development depends on the interaction between genes and experience, noting that “the brain doesn’t know how to wire itself.”
View ResourceCommon Core Reading: The Struggle Over Struggle
November 13, 2014
As part of its series on reading in the Common Core era, NPR explores how complex reading material impacts the success with which children learn to read. The piece quotes Center-affiliated faculty member Catherine Snow, an expert on language and literacy development in children.
View ResourceUnder the Hood of the Adolescent Brain
October 17, 2014
Adolescence is a crucial period in the development of lifelong mental health, says Center-affiliated faculty member Ronald Kessler. In his keynote at the annual Harvard Catalyst symposium on brain development in the second decade of life, Kessler discussed how the teenage years can begin a “cascade of triggers and problems” that lasts into adulthood. Kessler […]
View ResourceThe Way to Beat Poverty
September 14, 2014
In this column, authors Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn emphasize the importance of early intervention in breaking the cycle of poverty. Citing the work of Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff, they explain how adverse experiences associated with poverty can compromise brain development and undermine the foundations for healthy adult life. Such toxic stress can fuel […]
View ResourceAn Experiment in Zero Parenting
August 15, 2014
This article by Eliot Marshall highlights the work of the Bucharest Early Intervention Project, which studies how early childhood neglect affects brain development. The project was launched by Center-affiliated faculty member Charles A. Nelson III and National Scientific Council on the Developing Child member Nathan Fox. That work, in Romanian orphanages, has shown that the […]
View ResourceHow Childhood Neglect Harms the Brain
June 26, 2014
As part of its neuroscience-focused series “Brain Matters,” public radio station WBUR explores the science behind the effects of abuse and neglect on the developing brain. The story features interviews with Center-affiliated faculty member Charles A. Nelson III and Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff. Nelson speaks about his work on how profound early deprivation impairs […]
View ResourceInequality Begins at Birth
June 26, 2014
This post by Jeff Madrick discusses how early childhood adversities, including poverty, can create a toxic stress response in the body that can compromise the architecture of the developing brain. Interventions and programs that address the stressors of poverty are vital to improving health and educational outcomes for many children. Madrick notes, “What is concerning, […]
View ResourceHow Childhood Neglect and Abuse Impacts the Brain
June 26, 2014
Neglect, abuse, and other forms of maltreatment can produce lifelong changes in brain architecture. However, supportive, responsive relationships with adults can help prevent or mitigate such damaging effects. In this story, WBUR’s “Radio Boston” speaks with Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff about how serve and return interactions promote healthy brain development, and why it’s time […]
View ResourceHow Supportive Parenting Protects the Brain
June 26, 2014
This article discusses the effects of toxic stress on lifelong health and explains how supportive, responsive caregiving can help improve outcomes for children living in poverty or other adverse circumstances. The article quotes Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff.
View ResourceHospital Program Coaches Parents To Help Alleviate ‘Toxic Stress’ in Babies and Toddlers
June 23, 2014
At Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, an early childhood mental health program is working with parents to help them understand and address toxic stress in their children. This article quotes Center on the Developing Child Senior Fellow Pat Levitt on how serve and return interactions build children’s physical, mental, and emotional health. Also included are excerpts […]
View ResourceA Call for Two-Generation Strategies to Achieve ‘Breakthrough’ Impacts
June 19, 2014
Prevention Action, an online outlet that covers international efforts to improve child outcomes, reports on a recent publication by Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff and Center Senior Fellow Philip A. Fisher. Calling for the development of new early childhood intervention strategies based on science-driven innovation, Shonkoff and Fisher assert that interventions that strengthen the capabilities of […]
View ResourceNurtury Learning Lab Designed to Foster Opportunity
June 16, 2014
The Nurtury Learning Lab in Boston is a collaboration between the Boston Housing Authority and Nurtury, a longstanding early care and education agency. This article quotes Nurtury CEO Wayne Ysaguirre, who is a member of the Center’s Frontiers of Innovation initiative. By working with organizations including the Center on the Developing Child, the Learning Lab […]
View ResourceCan Brain Science Help Lift People Out Of Poverty?
June 6, 2014
Under the leadership of Elisabeth (Beth) Babcock, a member of the Center’s Frontiers of Innovation initiative, the Boston-based nonprofit EMPath (formerly Crittenton Women’s Union) is using brain science to help families break the cycle of poverty. Research indicates that the adverse experiences associated with poverty can impair vital executive function skills. CWU is applying the science […]
View ResourceTeaching Through Trauma
June 2, 2014
In this two-part series, public radio station KPCC reports on Los Angeles public schools that are working to address the impact of toxic stress on learning. Part one features ongoing efforts at the Camino Nuevo charter school to address poverty’s effects on the brain using targeted interventions that support both parents and children. Part two […]
View ResourceSpare the Rod – The Biology of Poverty and Violence
May 30, 2014
This article from IRIN, the international humanitarian news service, discusses global research and policy related to toxic stress and its implications for lifelong health. The article quotes Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff.
View ResourceBoys Report PTSD When Moved Out Of Poverty
March 12, 2014
This National Public Radio story features Center-affiliated faculty member Ronald Kessler, the lead author of a Journal of the American Medical Association study that analyzed a federal program to move families from public housing into more affluent areas. Kessler explains that while girls thrived under the program, boys developed conduct and mental health problems, possibly […]
View ResourceSoldiers Enter Military With Higher Rates of Mental Illness
March 4, 2014
Soldiers entering the U.S. Army have higher rates of mental illness than the general public, according to a study authored by Center-affiliated faculty member Ronald Kessler and other researchers. Because soldiers may develop additional conditions during their service, such as post-traumatic stress disorder, Kessler says they are at increased risk for suicide. Kessler is the […]
View ResourceSuicidal Tendencies Are Evident Before Deployment, Study Finds
March 4, 2014
A study by academic, government, and military researchers, including Center-affiliated faculty member Matthew K. Nock, addresses the troubling suicide rate among members of the U.S. Army. The findings reveal that enlisted men and women exhibit more impulsive anger than their civilian counterparts, increasing the likelihood that soldiers will act on suicidal urges. Nock is a […]
View ResourceOrphans’ Lonely Beginnings Reveal How Parents Shape a Child’s Brain
February 24, 2014
This National Public Radio story explores the effects of neglect on the developing brains of children living in Romanian orphanages. It highlights the research of Center-affiliated faculty member Charles A. Nelson III, whose studies of Romanian orphans examine how brain wiring goes awry when children are deprived of responsive caregiving.
View ResourceBringing Home the Plight of Abandoned Children
February 17, 2014
Children who don’t receive supportive early care lag behind their peers socially, physically, and intellectually, says Center-affiliated faculty member Charles A. Nelson III. In this Q&A interview with Karen Weintraub, Nelson discusses the new book he has co-authored about children living in Romanian orphanages, Romania’s Abandoned Children: Deprivation, Brain Development, and the Struggle for Recovery […]
View ResourceThe New Science Behind Early Education
January 31, 2014
In this interview, Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff speaks with Innovation Hub’s Kara Miller about why the early stages of development matter for children’s future health and educational success. Calling for innovations in policy and practice to help close the learning (and health) gap, Shonkoff highlights the need to build the capabilities of children’s adult […]
View ResourceWant Perfect Pitch? You Might Be Able To Pop A Pill For That
January 4, 2014
Research by Center-affiliated faculty member Takao Hensch suggests that a drug can restore brain plasticity to a juvenile state, allowing adults to learn perfect pitch. NPR’s Linda Wertheimer asks Hensch, who serves on the Center’s steering committee, about the implications of reopening this particular “critical period” of development. Hensch is a professor of molecular and […]
View Resource2013
Protecting Children From Toxic Stress
October 30, 2013
In the Fixes column on the Times web site, David Bornstein explores toxic stress, its implications for lifelong heath, and what can be done to prevent it, including by supporting parents in how to respond appropriately to their children’s cues and needs. The article quotes Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff.
View ResourceThe Road to Resilience
October 9, 2013
Huffington Post blogger Amy Spies highlights the work of Center-affiliated faculty member Theresa Betancourt, who is an associate professor of child health and human rights at Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH). Betancourt also directs the research program on children and global adversity at the François-Xavier Bagnoud Center for Health and Human Rights at HSPH.
View ResourceFollowing His Passion
October 1, 2013
This article, from Harvard University’s daily e-newsletter, cites work in Brazil on early childhood development being done by the Center in collaboration with several other institutions: Harvard’s David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies, Fundação Maria Cecilia Souto Vidigal, the Faculty of Medicine at the University of São Paulo, and Insper. The project, Núcleo Ciência […]
View ResourceThe Suicide Detective
June 26, 2013
Research by Center-affiliated faculty member Matthew K. Nock into understanding why people commit or attempt suicide is the subject of this article in the The New York Times Magazine. Nock is a psychology professor in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Harvard and director of the Laboratory for Clinical and Developmental Research in the Department […]
View ResourceHarvard EdCast: The Future of Early Childhood Ed
June 5, 2013
Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff discusses President Obama’s emphasis on early childhood education in his February 2013 State of the Union Address in the June 5 EdCast, a weekly podcast interview conducted by Matthew Weber at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
View ResourceLevitt Stresses Early Socialization in Center on the Developing Child’s Lecture Series
April 10, 2013
This article, from the Harvard daily student newspaper, describes the campus talk given by neuroscience professor Pat Levitt of the University of Southern California, which was part of the Center’s Distinguished Scholars Lecture Series.
View ResourcePoverty Impacts Developing Brains
April 4, 2013
This story from WGBH (Boston Public Radio) details the effects of poverty on children’s health and development and extensively quotes Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff.
View Resource5 Disorders Share Genetic Risk Factors, Study Finds
February 28, 2013
This Times article describes the largest genetic study to date of psychiatric disorders, led by Center-affiliated faculty member Jordan Smoller, and published in the journal Lancet.
View ResourceStudy Points To ‘Shared Biology’ Between 5 Psychiatric Disorders
February 28, 2013
This interview from CBS This Morning features Center-affiliated faculty member Jordan Smoller discussing new research that has identified genetic links between several major psychiatric disorders.
View ResourceHow Stress Gets Under the Skin: Q&A With Neuroscientist Bruce McEwen
February 20, 2013
In this Q&A with Time, National Scientific Council on the Developing Child member Bruce McEwen discusses the damaging effects of toxic stress response, how it differs from other stress responses, and how it can be prevented or even reversed.
View ResourceOvercoming Impact of Adversity on Learning
January 30, 2013
This Education Week article focuses on the state of Washington’s collaboration with the Center’s Frontiers of Innovation initiative.
View ResourceStudy Questions Effectiveness of Therapy for Suicidal Teenagers
January 8, 2013
The New York Times discusses a new study on the effectiveness of treatment for suicidal teenagers by Center affiliated faculty members Matthew Nock and Ronald Kessler.
View Resource2012
Reclaiming Childhood
November 1, 2012
Harvard Magazine profiles Center affiliated faculty member Theresa Betancourt and her research on the effectiveness of interventions that aim to help children around the world.
View Resource‘Your Honor, My Genes Made Me Do It’
October 21, 2012
This opinion piece, co-authored by Center-affiliated faculty member Jordan Smoller, argues that, recent advances in brain science notwithstanding, “until we can make well-founded, scientifically sound and legally relevant links between genes, brains, and behaviors, judges, juries and the public should be wary of neuroscience in the courtroom.” Smoller is the director of psychiatric genetics and […]
View ResourceCuddle Your Kid!
October 20, 2012
Columnist Nicholas D. Kristof cites brain architecture, toxic stress, and the work of Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff in highlighting why early childhood education and parenting programs may be “the most cost-effective way” to try to break the intergenerational cycle of poverty.
View ResourceCan Omar Khadr Get Past the Trauma?
October 3, 2012
This article covers the release in Canada of Omar Khadr, the former child soldier who had been held in prison in Guantánamo Bay, and quotes Center-affiliated faculty member Theresa Betancourt. Betancourt is an associate professor of child health and human rights at Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) and director of the research program on […]
View ResourceTargeting Childhood Obesity Early
September 18, 2012
This article features the work of Center-affiliated faculty member Matthew Gillman, who is studying the health of expectant mothers and their children. Gillman is the director of the Obesity Prevention Program in the Department of Population Medicine at Harvard Medical School and is a professor of population medicine at Harvard Pilgrim Health Care.
View ResourceWhat Does Obama Really Believe In?
August 15, 2012
Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff is quoted in this analysis of the Obama administration’s approach to combating poverty.
View ResourceToxic Stress – Why Abuse and Trauma Linger Into Adulthood
July 26, 2012
Center-affiliated faculty member Charles A. Nelson III is featured in this story about the impact of early life adversity on adult health outcomes. Nelson is the Richard David Scott Chair in Pediatric Developmental Research at Boston Children’s Hospital and a professor of pediatrics and neuroscience at Harvard Medical School.
View ResourceStressful Childhood Events Linked to Elevated Inflammation in Adolescence
July 24, 2012
This article features Natalie Slopen, a postdoctoral fellow at the Center. Slopen is the lead author of a recent study which links early adversity to elevated levels of inflammation during adolescence.
View ResourceU.S. Childcare System Makes ‘Having It All’ All the More Difficult
July 18, 2012
In this opinion piece by 2011-12 Richmond Fellow Todd Grindal, he argues for “reliable, consistent, and understandable information about the quality of all child care programs” in the United States. Grindal is a doctoral candidate at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
View ResourceNeurodevelopment: Unlocking the Brain
July 4, 2012
This article features the work of Center-affiliated faculty member Takao Hensch, whose research examines the biology underlying critical periods and its potential for treating brain disorders. Hensch is a professor of molecular and cellular biology in Harvard’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences and a professor of neurology at Boston Children’s Hospital.
View ResourceCan Parents Access Enough Information to Judge For-Profit Childcare?
June 27, 2012
2011-12 Richmond Fellow Todd Grindal’s paper on early childhood education services, published by the American Enterprise Institute, is the focus of this blog entry. Grindal is a doctoral candidate at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
View ResourceHow Might Autistic Children Be Similar? In Their Brainwaves
June 26, 2012
This story features Center-affiliated faculty member Charles A. Nelson III and his work at Boston Children’s Hospital (BCH) looking at the brain waves of autistic children. Nelson is the Richard David Scott Chair in Pediatric Developmental Research at BCH and a professor of pediatrics and neuroscience at Harvard Medical School.
View ResourceStudy Tracks Growing Understanding of UDL
June 20, 2012
This article features 2011-12 Richmond Fellow Todd Grindal discussing universal design for learning (UDL), an educational framework aimed at adapting instruction for individual learning differences. Grindal is a research associate for the Center’s meta-analytic database and a fifth year doctoral student at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
View ResourceS.J.D. Student Receives Julius B. Richmond Fellowship
May 15, 2012
This story from Harvard Law School features S.J.D. candidate Claire Houston, a 2012-13 Julius B. Richmond Fellowship recipient.
View ResourceHBO’s Weight of the Nation: Society, Not Individual, To Blame
May 14, 2012
Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff is quoted in this blog entry from Boston.com on HBO’s four-part documentary on obesity in the United States, “The Weight of the Nation.” Shonkoff is featured in the documentary discussing the need for prevention and early intervention.
View ResourceParents’ Depression Linked to Problems in Children
May 7, 2012
The link between parents’ depression and negative consequences for children is the focus of this article from The New York Times Well blog. Featured in the article is Center-affiliated faculty member William Beardslee, who is director of the Preventive Intervention Project at Judge Baker Children’s Center and is the Gardner/Monks Professor of Child Psychiatry at […]
View ResourceDeporting Parents Hurts Kids
April 20, 2012
Deporting undocumented parents can create lasting harm for their American citizen children, according to a recent op-ed co-authored by Center-affiliated faculty member and Academic Dean of the Harvard Graduate School of Education Hirokazu Yoshikawa. The article warns that children of deportation have a greater likelihood of facing long-term negative impacts, including economic turmoil, psychic scarring, […]
View ResourceProtecting the Heart with Optimism
April 17, 2012
Center-affiliated faculty member Laura Kubzansky is featured in this Harvard Science article, which highlights new research on the connection between cardiovascular disease and psychological well-being. Kubzansky is an associate professor of society, human development, and health at Harvard School of Public Health.
View ResourcePredicting Suicide
April 16, 2012
This interview with Center-affiliated faculty member Matthew K. Nock appears in the Spring issue of Proto magazine, which is a publication of Massachusetts General Hospital. Nock, a professor of psychology in Harvard’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences, discusses his research on suicide risk.
View ResourceTargeting Toxic Stress in Children
February 27, 2012
This Q&A interview with Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff focuses on the issue of toxic stress. Toxic stress refers to what occurs when the body’s stress response system is activated for long periods of time—by such triggers as recurrent abuse, chronic neglect or prolonged exposure to violence—without being able to calm down and return to […]
View ResourceSearching for Answers to Causes of Childhood Depression
February 3, 2012
In this news feature from the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH), Marge Dwyer describes a recent review of studies led by Erin Dunn, who is a former Julius B. Richmond Fellow at the Center on the Developing Child and a current postdoctoral fellow at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH). Dunn’s review sought to shed light […]
View ResourceHarvard EdCast: Toxic Stress in Early Childhood
January 27, 2012
Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff discusses the impact of early childhood toxic stress on adult health in the January 23 EdCast, a weekly podcast interview conducted by Matthew Weber at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. In the 14-minute interview, Shonkoff addresses the recent American Academy of Pediatrics policy statement on toxic stress, emphasizing the […]
View ResourceTender Young Brains: What Kind of Childhood Stress Should Parents Actually Be Stressing About?
January 18, 2012
A January 18 article from Slate cites the 2012 AAP reports on toxic stress as an important counterbalance to parents’ unfounded worries that allowing babies and toddlers to “cry it out” when trying to fall asleep constitutes abuse or neglect. As the Pediatrics reports summarize, some stress in childhood is a part of normal development. […]
View ResourceA Poverty Solution That Starts With a Hug
January 7, 2012
Columnist Nicholas D. Kristof brings the impact of toxic stress to the forefront in this column for The New York Times. Addressing the American Academy of Pediatrics’ January 2012 policy statement, which features Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff as co-author, Kristof posits that the paper’s recommendations could have “revolutionary implications” for poverty, education, and health […]
View Resource2011
Neurons in Youth
November 30, 2011
Center-affiliated faculty member Takao Hensch, a professor of neurology at Children’s Hospital Boston, is leading a group of Harvard researchers in an effort to map how brain wiring occurs early in life and what happens when it goes awry. Research by Hensch, who is also a professor of molecular and cellular biology, looks into how […]
View ResourceA Child’s Memory in Military Time
October 19, 2011
This article features Center-affiliated faculty members Charles A. Nelson III and Margaret Sheridan, who spoke at a seminar aimed at military veterans and members of the armed services, the first in a series by the Harvard College Veterans Engagement Initiative. Nelson and Sheridan, who are both on the faculty of Harvard Medical School, presented relevant […]
View ResourceLife After Death: Helping Former Child Soldiers Become Whole Again
October 1, 2011
This article by Karen Feldscher highlights Center-affiliated faculty member Theresa Betancourt, who is working to adapt and test group interventions for former child soldiers in Sierra Leone. As director of the research program on children and global adversity at Harvard School of Public Health, Betancourt looks closely at the harrowing experiences of this young population […]
View ResourceRisks Seen for Children of Illegal Immigrants
September 20, 2011
The New York Times covered a paper co-authored by Hirokazu Yoshikawa, a Center-affiliated faculty member and academic dean of the Harvard Graduate School of Education, about the developmental consequences for children of illegal immigrants. The paper, entitled “Growing Up in the Shadows: The Developmental Implications of Unauthorized Status,” appears in the Fall 2011 issue of the […]
View ResourceHarvard EdCast: Protecting Children’s Brains
August 24, 2011
Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff describes the science behind early childhood development in the August 24 “EdCast,” a weekly podcast produced by the Harvard Graduate School of Education. In the 15-minute interview with Matt Weber, Shonkoff makes the case for scientists, practitioners, and policymakers to work together to design and test creative new interventions that […]
View ResourceSpecial Edition of the Science Journal Supports the Need for Greater Attention to Preschool
August 19, 2011
This article from Correio Braziliense, a newspaper published in Brazil, features Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff in a special edition on early childhood education. The article states that quality education in the earliest years of life is crucial to future success. Shonkoff emphasizes the need for early education to incorporate both cognitive-linguistic enrichment and innovative […]
View ResourceProtecting Children From Adversity Key to Healthy Development
August 16, 2011
This news feature written by Karen Feldscher highlights an August 9 Hot Topics lecture by Jack P. Shonkoff, director of the Center on the Developing Child. In his talk, “Leveraging Science to Shape the Future of Early Childhood Policy,” Shonkoff spoke of the need for researchers and policymakers to work collaboratively to develop fresh ideas […]
View ResourceChild’s Telomeres May Tell of Early-Life Adversity
July 1, 2011
This article written by by Leslie Sinclair discusses the research of the Bucharest Early Intervention Project (BEIP), a randomized controlled trial of institutionalized care and deprivation in childhood. The team of researchers, which includes Center-affiliated faculty member Charles A. Nelson III, and National Scientific Council on the Developing Child member Nathan A. Fox, has been […]
View ResourceHelping Children to Fly
June 14, 2011
This article from Prevention Action, an online news publication focusing on innovation and effectiveness among child development programs, provides a summary of the Center’s 11th working paper, “Building the Brain’s ‘Air Traffic Control’ System: How Early Experiences Shape the Development of Executive Function.” As quoted from Working Paper 11, a joint publication of the National […]
View ResourceThe Child from Mozambique
June 8, 2011
In this entry from the Huffington Post’s World blog, Marcelo Giugale, the World Bank’s Director of Economic Policy and Poverty Reduction Programs for Africa, illustrates the profound negative impact of early poverty on future life outcomes. Giugale explains that brain plasticity peaks during the first year of life and that delays or interruptions in this […]
View ResourceLooking for Early Signs of Autism in Brain Waves
June 2, 2011
This article by Jon Hamilton from National Public Radio features the autism research of Center-affiliated faculty member Charles A. Nelson III, a member of the National Scientific Council on the Developing Child. Nelson’s work at Children’s Hospital Boston utilizes electroencephalography, a technology that monitors electrical activity in the brain, to help detect early signs of […]
View ResourceTying Race and Stress to Health
May 16, 2011
This Q&A interview by Karen Weintraub was conducted with Center-affiliated faculty member David R. Williams, the Florence Sprague Norman and Laura Smart Norman Professor at the Harvard School of Public Health and a professor of African and African-American Studies in Harvard’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Williams discusses his most recently published study, co-authored by […]
View ResourceStudy: Immigrant Hispanics Less Stressed, Healthier
May 5, 2011
A recently published study on racial disparities in health is the focus of this CNN Health blog entry. The study, co-authored by Center faculty affiliate David R. Williams, Center postdoctoral fellow Natalie Slopen, and Michelle Sternthal, shows that stress levels among American-born Hispanics and African-Americans are significantly higher than for foreign-born Hispanics and whites. According […]
View ResourceInvesting in Early Childhood Education is to Invest in Human Capital
April 28, 2011
This article from Veja, a weekly magazine in Brazil, features a Q&A interview by Nathalia Goulart with Jack P. Shonkoff, director of the Center on the Developing Child. Shonkoff states that investing in high-quality early childhood care and education is the best investment society can make, particularly for children of low-income families, and that education […]
View ResourceThe Poverty Clinic
March 21, 2011
This article by Paul Tough discusses the impact of childhood adversity on adult health and how new research is shaping the work of one pediatric health clinic. The article mentions Jack P. Shonkoff, director of the Center on the Developing Child, and National Scientific Council on the Developing Child member Bruce McEwen of The Rockefeller […]
View ResourceSmall Child, Big Worries
March 21, 2011
This article by Jeffrey Kluger from Time magazine takes a closer look at the emerging field of infant mental health research and how children can develop conditions such as depression and anxiety in the first years of life, earlier than previously thought possible. It quotes Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff on how unmitigated stresses in […]
View ResourceHow Childhood Trauma Can Cause Adult Obesity
January 5, 2010
This article by Maia Szalavitz describes research linking stressful experiences early in life, including sexual abuse, to effects on health and behavior later on, from obesity to drug abuse. It quotes Jack P. Shonkoff, director of the Center on the Developing Child, about the significance of the findings.
View Resource2010
Putting the Stress on Stress
December 27, 2010
This Q&A interview was conducted with Center-affiliated faculty member Michelle A. Albert, who is the director of behavioral and neurocardiovascular cardiology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and is an assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. Her research addresses health disparities among racial and ethnic groups and in what way psychological stress may affect […]
View ResourceA Tragedy and a Mystery: Understanding Suicide and Self-Injury
December 17, 2010
This article by Elizabeth Gudrais highlights the research of Matthew K. Nock, Center-affiliated faculty member, and how his expertise in suicide risk is being used to help the U.S. Army. Nock and other researchers are conducting a five-year suicide prevention study using data from past suicides, current soldiers, and new recruits to take a closer […]
View ResourceAlzheimer’s Drugs for ‘Lazy Eye’?
December 16, 2010
This entry on the Children’s Hospital science and clinical innovation blog features Takao Hensch, who has been studying amblyopia, or “lazy eye,” as a model for understanding brain plasticity. The article, written by Parizad Bilimoria describes how this work is shedding new light on existing therapies while revealing the potential new benefits of more unexpected […]
View ResourceFiguring Out Suicidal Behavior
October 7, 2010
This article profiles Center faculty affiliate Matthew K. Nock, who studies suicide and is a newly tenured professor in the psychology department of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Source: Center on the Developing Child Media Coverage
View ResourceDepressed Parents’ Negative Effects on Kids are Combatable
March 15, 2010
In describing parental depression’s effects on infants and children, this article quotes Center-affiliated faculty member William Beardslee, who is the Gardner/Monks Professor of Child Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. It also cites the Center’s Working Paper 8, “Maternal Depression Can Undermine the Development of Young Children.”
View ResourcePreventing Suicide
March 15, 2010
The suicide-prevention research of Center-affiliated faculty member Matthew K. Nock is the focus of this Q&A interview by Karen Weintraub. Nock, who is the John L. Loeb Associate Professor of the Social Sciences in the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences, discusses cyberbullying and trying to predict suicide in adults and adolescents.
View ResourceStressed Out! The Powerful Biology of Stress
March 6, 2010
This installment of the ABC radio program All in the Mind features interviews with W. Thomas Boyce of the University of British Columbia in Vancouver and Bruce McEwen of The Rockefeller University discussing the biology of stress and how it affects the brain and children’s development. Boyce and McEwen are both members of the National […]
View ResourceThe Biology of Emotion—and What It May Teach Us about Helping People to Live Longer
March 1, 2010
This article features Center faculty affiliate Laura Kubzansky, who is an Associate Professor of Society, Human Development, and Health at the Harvard School of Public Health. Kubzansky is at the forefront of research that seeks to understand the link between emotion and health. This article was written by by Sara Rimer and Madeline Drexler.
View ResourceChildhood Poverty May Leave Its Mark
February 23, 2010
This article discusses research presented at the 2010 annual American Association for the Advancement of Science meeting showing that the earliest years of life are critical for determining future adult earnings and that childhood poverty causes lasting changes in the brain. It features the comments of Jack Shonkoff, director of the Center on the Developing […]
View ResourceMemories are made of this: Kandel outlines how brains manage data, and are changed by it
February 9, 2010
This article by Steve Bradt summarizes Nobel Prize winner Dr. Eric R. Kandel’s lecture on February 8 in Cambridge as part of the Center’s Distinguished Scholars Lecture Series. His talk, “The Molecular Biology of Memory Storage and the Biological Basis of Individuality,” considered the neural systems and molecular mechanisms that contribute to learning and long-term […]
View Resource2009
The Science of Success
December 1, 2009
This article by David Dobbs discusses a new theory of behavioral genetics and quotes pediatrician W. Thomas Boyce, of the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, and a member of the National Scientific Council on the Developing Child.
View ResourceHub Lab Writing the Book on Face-Reading
November 10, 2009
The article by Patricia Wen describes research conducted at Children’s Hospital Boston by Center-affiliated faculty member Charles A. Nelson III, a member of the National Scientific Council on the Developing Child. The project studies when and how babies and young children learn to identify faces and discern facial expressions.
View ResourceUnderstanding the Anxious Mind
October 4, 2009
The article by Robin Marantz Henig describes research into the development of human temperament by two former and current Center affiliates: Jerome Kagan and Nathan A. Fox. Kagan, who is the Daniel and Amy Starch Research Professor of Psychology, Emeritus, in Harvard’s psychology department, was a member of the Center’s Core Research Seminar from 2006 […]
View ResourceUnnatural Causes: Is Inequality Making Us Sick?
October 1, 2009
This four-hour documentary series, broadcast in October 2009 on PBS stations, features Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff, affiliated Harvard faculty members Ichiro Kawachi and David Williams, and National Scientific Council on the Developing Child member Bruce McEwen of Rockefeller University.
View ResourceWant a Rich, Happy Country? Start Young.
August 1, 2009
The article by Jimmy Langman cites Chile as an example of a growing trend in Latin America and beyond for countries to heed the advice of experts “who argue that the best way to strengthen a society and increase development is to improve health, education, and other services for its youngest citizens.” The article quotes […]
View ResourceNova: Autism Genes
July 7, 2009
This program segment, which discusses research efforts to identify genes that might be responsible for autism, features comments from Center-affiliated faculty members Takao Hensch and Charles A. Nelson III.
View ResourceAging well starts in womb, as mom’s choices affect whole life
June 30, 2009
The article by Liz Szabo quotes Center Director Jack P. Shonkoff: “Twentieth-century medicine dealt with child health and adult health separately. What 21st-century medicine is telling us is that if we want to change adult health, we have to look in babies, even before they’re born.
View ResourceThe Developing Child
March 1, 2009
Center-sponsored research, initiatives, and affiliated faculty members receive extensive treatment in this cover article and the related Web-only content, written by Elizabeth Gudrais
View ResourceThe Brains of Babes
March 1, 2009
In three episodes, broadcast on March 4, March 11, and March 18, 2009, reporter Jill Eisen details how new research into brain development, human biology, and behavior is showing how early experience can affect lifelong health and well-being. The series features both W. Thomas Boyce, a member of the National Scientific Council on the Developing […]
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