The Center for Social Development is broadly engaged in designing and testing social innovations that promote full inclusion, fair treatment, and achievement of one’s full potential. Our research is transdisciplinary and encompasses seven primary areas.

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Research from 2019

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Child Development Accounts at Scale: Sample State Legislation, Margaret M. Clancy, Michael Sherraden, and Sondra G. Beverly

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Essential Policy Design Elements for Statewide Child Development Accounts, Margaret M. Clancy, Michael Sherraden, and Sondra G. Beverly

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Financially Vulnerable Families Reap Multiple Benefits From Child Development Accounts, Jin Huang, Sondra G. Beverly, Youngmi Kim, Margaret M. Clancy, and Michael Sherraden

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Healing Policies for Black Boys and Young Men in St. Louis: Priorities in 2019, Sean Joe, Robert Motley, Alexandra Ivory, Alyssa Finner, and Janet Frederick

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Lessons and Policy Implications from the Flint Water Crisis, Amy Krings, Dana Kornberg, and Shawna Lee

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Race, Income, and Voting Access on Election Day, Aura Aguilar, Gena Gunn McClendon, Michael Sherraden, and Kyle A. Pitzer

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SEED for Oklahoma Kids Wave 3: Extending Rigorous Research and a Successful Policy Model, Margaret M. Clancy, Michael Sherraden, and Sondra G. Beverly

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Segregation and a Path Forward to Inclusion in St. Louis, Henry S. Webber

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Social Mobility: The Necessary Focus of St. Louis Investment in Black Males, Sean Joe and Robert Motley

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Statewide Child Development Accounts and Local Partnerships: A Scalable Model that Can Include All Families, Margaret M. Clancy, Michael Sherraden, Jim Huang, Sondra G. Beverly, and Youngmi Kim

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The Meadowlark Scholarship Act: Testimony on L.B. 544 Before the Education Committee 106th Nebraska Legislature, Margaret Clancy

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Volunteering and Measures of Human Development, Benjamin J. Lough PhD

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Who Will Help Children? Building Brain Regimes, William F. Tate IV

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Will I Be Able to Cast My Ballot? Race, Income, and Voting Access on Election Day, Gena Gunn McClendon, Kyle A. Pitzer, Michael Sherraden, and Aura Aguilar

Research from 2018

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Asset Building as Social Investment, Michael Sherraden

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A Toolkit for Expanding Financial Capability at Tax Time, Genevieve Davison, Merideth Covington, Olga Kondratjeva, Stephen P. Roll, and Michal Grinstein-Weiss

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Build the Village That Raises the Child, HomeGrown STL

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Child Development Accounts and Saving for College: Mediated by Parental Educational Expectations?, Youngmi Kim, Jin Huang, Michael Sherraden, and Margaret M. Clancy

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Community Violence Exposure and Risk Taking Behaviors Among Black Emerging Adults: A Systematic Review, Robert O. Motley, Whitney Sewell, and Yu-Chih Chen

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Estimating the Economic Cost of Childhood Poverty in the United States, Michael McLaughlin and Mark R. Rank

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Faculty Perspectives on Financial Capability and Asset Building in Social Work Education: A Research Report, Margaret S. Sherraden, Jin Huang, Lissa Johnson, Peter Dore, Julie Birkenmaier, Vernon Loke, and Sally Hageman

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Family Assets, Parental Expectations, and Children Educational Performance: An Empirical Examination From China, Shu Fang, Jin Haung, Jami Curley, and Julie Birkenmaier

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Financial Capability as Social Investment, Mary Caplan, Margaret S. Sherraden, and Junghee Bae

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How Do Changes to 529 Rules Affect Children’s Savings Account Programs?, Margaret Clancy, Shira Markoff, and Justin King

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Hypermobility and Educational Outcomes: The Case of St. Louis, Molly W. Metzger, Patrick J. Fowler, and Todd Swanstom

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Incomplete Democracy: The Relationship of Race, Income, and Education to Voter Participation, Gena Gunn McClendon PhD, Kyle A. Pitzer, and Austin T. Tolani

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Next Steps: Whither Social Work Education and Financial Capability and Asset Building?, Darla Spence Coffey

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Police Use of Force by Ethnicity, Sex, and Socioeconomic Class, Robert O. Motley Jr. and Sean Joe

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Policy Recommendations for Expanding Access to Banking and Financial Services, Terri Friedline, Mathieu R. Despard, and Julie Birkenmaier

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Policy Recommendations for Financial Capability and Asset Building by Increasing Access to Safe, Affordable Credit, Julie Birkenmaier, Mathieu R. Despard, and Terri Friedline

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Policy Recommendations for Helping U.S. Households Build Emergency Savings, Mathieu R. Despard, Terri Friedline, and Julie Birkenmaier

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Program Knowledge and Racial Disparities in Savings Outcomes in a Child Development Account Experiment, Yunju Nam, Elizabeth Hole, Michael Sherraden, and Margaret M. Clancy

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Promoting Savings at Tax Time: Insights from Online and In-Person Tax Preparation Services, Genevieve Davison, Ellen Frank-Miller, Stephen P. Roll, and Michal Grinstein-Weiss

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Refund to Savings 2015-2016: Field Experiments to Promote Tax-Time Saving in Low- and Moderate-Income Households, Stephen P. Roll, Genevieve Davison, Michal Grinstein-Weiss, Mathieu R. Despard, and Sam Bufe

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Responses to and Repercussions From Income Volatility in Low- and Moderate-Income Households: Results From a National Survey, Stephen P. Roll, David S. Mitchell, Krista Holub, Sam Bufe, and Michal Grinstein-Weiss

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School Banking as a Strategy for Strengthening Youth Economic Participation in Developing Countries: Lessons From YouthSave, Lissa Johnson, YungSoo Lee, Githinji Njenga, Joseph Kieyah, Isaac Osei-Akoto, Catherine Rodriguez Orgales, Sharad Sharma, Gina Agnes Chowa, David Ansong, Fred Ssewamala, Margaret S. Sherraden, Michael Sherraden, and Li Zou

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Smart Decarceration: Achieving Criminal Justice Transformation in the 21st Century, Matthew W. Epperson and Carrie Pettus-Davis

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St. Louis's “Team TIF”: A Community–Academic Partnership for Tax Incentive Reform, Nay'Chelle Harris and Molly W. Metzger

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Taking Child Development Accounts to Scale: Ten Key Policy Design Elements, Michael Sherraden, Margaret M. Clancy, and Sondra G. Beverly

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The Experience of Volatility in Low- and Moderate-Income Households: Results From a National Survey, Stephen P. Roll, David S. Mitchell, Sam Bufe, Gracie Lynne, and Michal Grinstein-Weiss

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The Global Research Agenda on Volunteering for Peace and Development, Benjamin J. Lough PhD, Cliff Allum, Peter Devereux, and Rebecca Tiessen

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The Pivotal Role of Human Service Practitioners in Building Financial Capability, Mae Watson Grote

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The Relationship Between Cigarette Taxes and Child Maltreatment, Michael McLaughlin

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The Role of Choice Architecture in Promoting Saving at Tax Time: Evidence From a Large-Scale Field Experiment, Michal Grinstein-Weiss, Cynthia Cryder, Mathieu R. Despard, Dana C. Perantie, Jane E. Oliphant, and Dan Ariely

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The State of State EITCs: An Overview and Their Implications for Low- and Moderate-Income Households, Genevieve Davison, Stephen P. Roll, Samuel H. Taylor, and Michal Grinstein-Weiss

Research from 2017

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529 Plan Investment Growth and a Quasi-Default Investment for Child Development Accounts, Margaret Clancy

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Annual Report on the Head Start Family Financial Capability Program: 2015–2016, Jami Curley and Anne S. Robertson

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Assessing Retirement Needs and Interest in myRa: Findings From the Refund to Savings Initiative, Stephen P. Roll, Jane E. Oliphant, Dana C. Perantie, Michal Grinstein-Weiss, and Genevieve Davison

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Asset Limits for Means-Tested Public Assistance: Considerations for Child Development Account Proponents, Sondra G. Beverly and Margaret M. Clancy

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Child Development Accounts, Parental Savings, and Parental Educational Expectations: A Path Model, Youngmi Kim, Jin Huang, Michael Sherraden, and Margaret M. Clancy