“Inequality begins at home. It develops from the myriad differences in the ways advantaged and disadvantaged parents interact with their children”, said Ariel Kalil, from University of Chicago, at a seminar organised jointly by the EIB Institute, University of Luxembourg and other partners as part of the “Inequality and…” series.

Before school age, higher-income parents spend more time providing educationally enriching activities to their children, creating what Professor Kalil calls a “parenting gap” that increases over time. According to her, “parenting style is the most important factor explaining the poorer cognitive performance of low-income children relative to middle-income children.”

“Any effective policy to foster children’s skills has to recognise the importance of the family, the mechanisms through which families create child skills and the stress under which many families operate”, she concluded.

Click here for presentation.