Evaluating the Impact of Preschool on Patience, Time Consistency and Commitment Demand

Last registered on February 07, 2023
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Evaluating the Impact of Preschool on Patience, Time Consistency and Commitment Demand
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0010891
Initial registration date
January 30, 2023

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
February 07, 2023, 11:14 AM EST

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

Country
United States of America
Region
Chicago, IL

Primary Investigator

Name
Amanda Chuan
Affiliation
Michigan State University
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Anya Samek
PI Affiliation
University of California at San Diego
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PI Name
Shreemayi Samujjwala
PI Affiliation
University of Pennsylvania
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Additional Trial Information

Status
On going
Start date
2015-09-01
End date
2023-12-31
Keywords
Education
Additional Keywords
time preferences, patience, inconsistency, impulsivity, human capital
JEL code(s)
I21, I24, J24, I26
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial is based on or builds upon one or more prior RCTs.
Abstract
We use a field experiment to evaluate patience, time inconsistency and commitment demand among young children. We first show that patience at ages 5-10 positively predicts reading scores up to 4 years later, even when controlling for cognitive and executive function assessment scores. In contrast, time inconsistency and commitment demand do not predict reading scores. Second, we evaluate whether preschool affects patience. We leverage a field experiment that randomized children to different preschool curricula. We find that children who were offered the preschool curriculum focused on self-regulation make patient decisions in both periods of the experiment, whereas control children who were not offered the preschool intervention do not. Further, preschool helps children use commitment devices to manage their time inconsistency, but does not affect time inconsistency directly.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Chuan, Amanda, Anya Samek and Shreemayi Samujjwala. 2023. "Evaluating the Impact of Preschool on Patience, Time Consistency and Commitment Demand." AEA RCT Registry. February 07. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.10891-1.0
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Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
We use a pre-existing randomized controlled trial, called the Chicago Heights Early Childhood Center (CHECC). CHECC randomized children to a preschool, a Parent Academy workshop, or the control group. Our paper will only use the preschool and control groups.

Within preschool, children were randomized to one of three curricula. Children who participated in 2010-2012 were randomized to either the Tools of the Mind curriculum or the Literacy Express curriculum. Preschool children who participated in 2012-2014 all received the CogX curriculum. The control group receives no daycare or preschool.

After children leave preschool, we revisit them in the elementary school classroom to elicit time preferences. Our task involves giving children the opportunity to choose between one glow bracelet tomorrow (sooner) or two glow bracelets the next day (later). We then surprise children with the opportunity to change their mind the next day, when the sooner option becomes available immediately. This enables us to capture patience and time inconsistency. The following week, we repeat the experiment. The only difference in execution is that after children make their first choice between one glow bracelet tomorrow or two glow bracelets the next day, we offer them a commitment device to help them stick to the option of two glow bracelets later.
Intervention Start Date
2015-09-01
Intervention End Date
2015-10-01

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
We measure patience by whether children choose the two bracelet option when they must wait for either option. We measure inconsistency by whether children change their mind when the one bracelet option becomes available immediately. We measure commitment demand using whether they take up the commitment device.

We correlate these measures with future academic and behavioral measures. These include standardized reading and math scores, number of disciplinary referrals, patience in future tasks, and risk preferences in future tasks.
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
We use a pre-existing randomized controlled trial, called the Chicago Heights Early Childhood Center (CHECC). CHECC randomized children to a preschool, a Parent Academy workshop, or the control group. Our paper will only use the preschool and control groups.

Within preschool, children were randomized to one of three curricula. Children who participated in 2010-2012 were randomized to either the Tools of the Mind curriculum or the Literacy Express curriculum. Preschool children who participated in 2012-2014 all received the CogX curriculum. The control group receives no daycare or preschool.
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
public lottery
Randomization Unit
Family. For families with one child of preschool age in 2010-2014, this will be equivalent to randomizing at the child level. For families with more than one child of preschool age in 2010-2014, all children will be randomized to the same treatment.
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
2000 families
Sample size: planned number of observations
2000 families, corresponding to approximately 2000 children
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
1132 in Control; 133 in Tools of the Mind; 136 in Literacy Express; 263 in CogX
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
University of Chicago Social and Behavioral Sciences Institutional Review Board
IRB Approval Date
2010-05-27
IRB Approval Number
H10083
Analysis Plan

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

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Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
No
Data Collection Complete
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials