This is the 2021 update to the 2017 paper, which proposes three basic principles that are grounded in science and can help guide policymakers and program developers, now calls out more explicitly the growing body of evidence of a link between disparities in health and education outcomes and the ways in which public structures, systems, and services deny opportunity to people of color. Other updates reflect our own journey of listening more carefully to the voices of people who are experiencing multiple forms of adversity personally.

The basic concepts of child development have not changed, and the need to base public policy on sound scientific concepts has never been more compelling. We believe this expanded context can help catalyze fresh thinking and more effective action.



Recent advances in the science of brain development offer us an unprecedented opportunity to solve some of society’s most challenging problems, from widening disparities in school achievement and economic productivity to costly health problems across the
lifespan. Understanding how the experiences children have starting at birth, even prenatally,
affect lifelong outcomes—combined with new knowledge about the core capabilities adults need to thrive as parents and in the workplace—provides a strong foundation upon which
policymakers and civic leaders can design a shared and more effective agenda.
The science of child development and the core capabilities of adults point to a set of “design
principles” that policymakers and practitioners in many different sectors can use to improve outcomes for children and families. That is, to be maximally effective, policies and services should:

1. Support responsive relationships for children and adults.

2. Strengthen core life skills.

3. Reduce sources of stress in the lives of children and families.
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