Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/36310
Year of Publication: 
2009
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 4533
Publisher: 
Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
This paper estimates the rate of return to the High/Scope Perry Preschool Program, an early intervention program targeted toward disadvantaged African-American youth. Estimates of the rate of return to the Perry program are widely cited to support the claim of substantial economic benefits from preschool education programs. Previous studies of the rate of return to this program ignore the compromises that occurred in the randomization protocol. They do not report standard errors. The rates of return estimated in this paper account for these factors. We conduct an extensive analysis of sensitivity to alternative plausible assumptions. Estimated social rates of return generally fall between 7-10 percent, with most estimates substantially lower than those previously reported in the literature. However, returns are generally statistically significantly different from zero for both males and females and are above the historical return on equity. Estimated benefit-to-cost ratios support this conclusion.
Subjects: 
Rate of return
cost-benefit analysis
standard errors
Perry Preschool Program
compromised randomization
early childhood intervention programs
deadweight costs
JEL: 
D62
I22
I28
Document Type: 
Working Paper

Files in This Item:
File
Size
318.65 kB





Items in EconStor are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.