A Path Appears: Transforming Lives, Creating Opportunity

Throughout the book, the authors highlight the fact that preventing a problem is usually more effective, and almost always cheaper, than dealing with it after the fact. The science of brain development has shown that the period from a fetus’s development in the womb up through a baby’s first two years or so is crucial in the case of education, socialization, and personal well-being. Thus, for many issues, programs that address this time period are necessary.

For example, Chapter 5 discusses the so-called “30-million-word gap.” This is the greater number of words that a child of professional parents hears by age four, compared to a child of parents on welfare. Studies have shown that hearing words is essential for children’s literacy skills, IQ, and later school performance. The Reach Out and Read program was begun by pediatricians to address this gap. Kids are given books when they come in for doctor’s visits, and their parents are coached in the importance of reading to them. As noted above, the cost for this program per child is only $20 a year. Compare that to the millions spent by school systems trying to raise standardized test scores.

Another example is the Nurse-Family Partnership described in Chapter 4. In this program, trained nurses make home visits to pregnant women, counseling them on the dangers of using alcohol and drugs, as well as smoking cigarettes. The nurses also help expectant mothers find resources and provide an ear to listen to their concerns. After the baby’s birth, the nurses continue to visit and dispense advice and assistance. Evaluation of the program showed, among other things, reduced instances of parental abuse, fewer visits to the emergency room, fewer subsequent pregnancies for the mothers, and a reduced number of arrests for the children through age 15. This program costs $4,500 per mother per year, which seems to be a bargain compared to remedial programs for youth who end up in trouble. For example, the state of California spends $216,000 annually on each juvenile delinquent in custody (97).

When we think about altruism, the focus is on the recipient of aid. Part of the purpose of this book, however, is to show that giving is beneficial to the donor as well as the recipient. The authors look at why people behave altruistically as well as why they don’t. In an effort to explain the altruistic impulse in people—not to mention persuade readers to act—they tout the benefits of giving to and helping others. Such benefits are not the result of hearsay or mere intuition but of research.

Brain scans have been able to illustrate how giving affects the chemical make-up of the human brain. During an fMRI, pleasure centers in the brain light up to varying degrees when subjects perform simulated giving actions. It’s not clear whether the pleasure is derived from a pure desire to see improvements in the lives of others or from the added respect one gets from society for doing good. One theory has it that the latter leads to positive results for the giver, such as attracting better mates. Either way, the act of giving seems to rebound to the benefit of the giver. Other research has shown physical and mental benefits from volunteering. An evaluation of the Experience Corps program for volunteers over age 55, for example, indicated that participants had improved executive function (organizing and planning processes), which often begin to atrophy in the elderly. Since impaired executive function is seen in dementia patients, volunteering could stave off the onset of dementia.