A Stanford University study examining the development of 3, 528 Canadian preschoolers living in low income neighborhoods has found that children living in disadvantaged areas are may be at an increased risk of suffering from verbal and behavioral problems. Parents of these children are also more likely to experience challenges which may compromise their parenting skills, such as poorer mental health, and less stable family relations. As a result, say researchers, parents engage in less consistent and more punitive disciplinary measures, in turn affecting children’s preschool achievement. The study was a joint effort by researchers at the University of Ottawa, Johns Hopkins University, the University of British Columbia, and Statistics Canada.

Study results do not indicate that parents from poorer neighborhoods are less competent moms and dads, say the researchers. "This study does not show that poverty leads to bad parenting, which in turn leads to poor outcomes in children," Dafna E. Kohen, the study’s lead author, said in a public statement. "Rather, this study shows that in neighborhoods where there is socioeconomic disadvantage, children's verbal and behavioral outcomes are influenced by poor parental mental health and parenting behaviors." Kohen is an adjunct professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine at the University of Ottawa, and senior research analyst at Statistics Canada.

One major factor in poorer areas is the lack of neighborhood cohesion, and high levels of mistrust among residents, which can affect parents’ mental health. As a result, frightened and frustrated parents may dole out punitive measures when disciplining their children, creating a higher risk of behavioral problems in their offspring. In addition, children in poorer neighborhoods are less likely to have reading time with their parents, affecting their verbal and abilities.

Despite such disturbing findings, it is important to note that parental love is a key element to a child’s development, says Andrew Seltzer Ed. D., Children's Aid Society's Deputy Director of Head Start (in our Community Schools), and Deputy Director of Early Childhood Programs. “All parents love their children. Love gets expressed in many ways, by families of all backgrounds. All families want what’s best for their children, and families want to protect their children, “Seltzer asserts.

Our Community Schools are New York City public schools in which The Children's Aid Society partners with the Department of Education to provide extensive social, medical, dental and mental health services, after-school programming and all out of school time programs.

The Children’s Aid Society also runs the Head Start and Early Head Start classes at several schools. All schools are in low-income communities in Manhattan, Staten Island and the Bronx. The program is run by Dr. Seltzer and his colleagues in Washington Heights, Manhattan.

The issue, Seltzer argues, is not necessarily whether poor parents can take care of their children. “The researchers are separating parenting from poverty. Poverty is an institutionalized experience. Poor health care, poor educational system, poor housing—to separate them, doesn’t make sense to me, and won’t solve the problem,” Seltzer tells demo dirt.  “Children growing up in poverty is an institutionalized problem, not an parenting problem, although parents do have an influence.”

Lack of finances, combined with the higher rate of violence in low income neighborhoods, create “stressors that can affect parenting. The lack of finances creates a certain amount of instability in one’s life—including difficulties in terms of housing, job security, health care, and child care.”

The key is to examine the environment in which children of poverty are forced grow up, and how their development will be affected. For instance, Seltzer says, “Kids can’t play outside in many neighborhoods. It is incredible how much time low income kids stay inside. Between the two issues—lack of finances and more violence—families suffer from social isolation.”

Blaming parents who live in poverty is too simple, an unfair, Seltzer contends. “If you had an educational system that worked well, you wouldn’t have language delays, and if you had a health care system that worked, you wouldn’t have so many kids with asthma. And, if you had a housing system that worked, it would be easier for parents,” he explains.

Poverty-stricken parents are reacting to a lack of institutionalized support, a situation in which “all of us would be frustrated, “Seltzer says. “Parents are responding to a lack of institutional support. Things would change if the institutions would change, and parents would be less frustrated.”

The study researchers plan to focus further research on how to overcome the many challenges facing families living in poverty. “The impact of living in a disadvantaged neighborhood exerts its influence through both neighborhood and family mechanisms," Kohen said publicly. "Children benefit from parents who are physically and emotionally healthy and live in safe neighborhoods where they trust their neighbors. Among the implications of these findings are community-based initiatives to promote literacy activities and parenting behaviors for the healthy development of children and their families."