Molly Metzger - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Molly Metzger
Previous studies that have examined risk of youth violence among Latinos are hampered by a system... more Previous studies that have examined risk of youth violence among Latinos are hampered by a systemic lack of precision, both in grouping all Latinos together without regard to different ethnic subgroups, and in focusing on standardized neighborhood disadvantage measures that do not differentiate between economic and racial indicators, nor include indicators of other important neighborhood structural and social factors. Based on social disorganization and segmented assimilation theories, this study utilized the In-Home and Contextual data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health to examine the impact of exposure to key indicators of economic, racial/ethnic, social, and structural neighborhood dimensions previously linked to the risk of violent behaviors. It focused on understanding intra-ethnic and inter-ethnic patterns of risk and protection, with particular emphasis on Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, and other Latino adolescents in the United States. Results point to ...
Seeking convergent findings in five data sets from four countries, we assess the relative importa... more Seeking convergent findings in five data sets from four countries, we assess the relative importance of adolescent skills and behaviors for completed schooling and labor market success in adulthood. We provide a framework for classifying "noncognitive" skills and use data designed by developmental psychologists to provide reliable measures of a variety of achievement and behavioral skills assessed between ages 13 and 16. Results show that adolescent achievement, particularly math achievement, is a stronger predictor of completed schooling than measures of noncognitive skills. Achievement skills also out-predict noncognitive skills with regard to adult earnings, although the differences are not as striking.
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 2014
Chronic inflammation is a potentially important physiological mechanism linking early life enviro... more Chronic inflammation is a potentially important physiological mechanism linking early life environments and health in adulthood. Elevated concentrations of C-reactive protein (CRP)-a key biomarker of inflammation-predict increased cardiovascular and metabolic disease risk in adulthood, but the developmental factors that shape the regulation of inflammation are not known. We investigated birth weight and breastfeeding duration in infancy as predictors of CRP in young adulthood in a large representative cohort study (n ¼ 6951). Birth weight was significantly associated with CRP in young adulthood, with a negative association for birth weights 2.8 kg and higher. Compared with individuals not breastfed, CRP concentrations were 20.1%, 26.7%, 29.6% and 29.8% lower among individuals breastfed for less than three months, three to six months, 6-12 months and greater than 12 months, respectively. In sibling comparison models, higher birth weight was associated with lower CRP for birth weights above 2.5 kg, and breastfeeding greater than or equal to three months was significantly associated with lower CRP. Efforts to promote breastfeeding and improve birth outcomes may have clinically relevant effects on reducing chronic inflammation and lowering risk for cardiovascular and metabolic diseases in adulthood.
Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 2009
The present study evaluated the efficacy of a multi-component classroom-based intervention in red... more The present study evaluated the efficacy of a multi-component classroom-based intervention in reducing preschoolers' behavior problems. The Chicago School Readiness Project model was implemented in 35 Head-Start classrooms, using a clustered RCT design. Results indicate significant treatment effects for teacher-reported and independent observations of children's internalizing and externalizing behavior problems, with effect sizes ranging from d =.53 to d =.89. Moreover, there was some evidence for the moderating role of child gender, race/ethnic group membership, and exposure to poverty-related risk, with stronger effects of intervention for some groups of children than for others. Findings contribute to a growing area of research on poverty and preventive intervention in early childhood.
Early Education & Development, 2010
Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 2008
American Journal of Human Biology, 2010
In light of the growing prevalence of obesity in the United States, and the health risks associat... more In light of the growing prevalence of obesity in the United States, and the health risks associated with childhood obesity in particular, it is critical to identify avenues for obesity prevention. This study tests the hypothesis that breastfeeding serves as one protective factor against children's subsequent development of obesity. We used linear-, logistic-, and sibling fixed-effects regression models to evaluate the association between infant feeding history and body mass index (BMI) in late childhood or adolescence (9-19 years, mean 5 14 years). Complete data were available for 976 participants (488 sibling pairs) in the 2002 Child Development Supplement of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, a nationally representative survey of families in the United States. In sibling pairs in which only one sibling was breastfed, the breastfed sibling had an adolescent BMI that was 0.39 standard deviations lower than his or her sibling, controlling for child-specific factors that may have influenced parents' feeding decisions. This effect is equivalent to a difference of more than 13 pounds for a 14-year-old child of average height. Furthermore, fixed-effects logistic regressions predicting overweight and obese status showed that breastfed siblings were less likely to reach those BMI thresholds. We therefore conclude that breastfeeding in infancy may be an important protective factor against the development of obesity in the United States. The application of a sibling fixed-effects model provides stronger evidence of a causal relationship than prior research reporting similar patterns of association. Am.
American journal of human biology, 2010
In light of the growing prevalence of obesity in the United States, and the health risks associat... more In light of the growing prevalence of obesity in the United States, and the health risks associated with childhood obesity in particular, it is critical to identify avenues for obesity prevention. This study tests the hypothesis that breastfeeding serves as one protective factor against children's subsequent development of obesity. We used linear-, logistic-, and sibling fixed-effects regression models to evaluate the association between infant feeding history and body mass index (BMI) in late childhood or adolescence (9–19 ...
Economics of Education Review, 2010
This paper provides detailed evidence regarding the nature of selection into a school voucher sys... more This paper provides detailed evidence regarding the nature of selection into a school voucher system. We use micro-data on scholarship applications matched with state student-level records on test scores, schools attended, and demographic background characteristics to describe the attributes of students who choose to participate in Florida's Corporate Tax Credit Scholarship Program, a means-tested scholarship program that is the largest of its type in the United States. We find evidence that those who choose to participate in the program tend to be lower-performing students from poorly performing schools, and that students of different backgrounds tend to choose different types of private schools. Students participating in the program tend to select schools that have more white students and fewer minority students, regardless of student race.
Previous studies that have examined risk of youth violence among Latinos are hampered by a system... more Previous studies that have examined risk of youth violence among Latinos are hampered by a systemic lack of precision, both in grouping all Latinos together without regard to different ethnic subgroups, and in focusing on standardized neighborhood disadvantage measures that do not differentiate between economic and racial indicators, nor include indicators of other important neighborhood structural and social factors. Based on social disorganization and segmented assimilation theories, this study utilized the In-Home and Contextual data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health to examine the impact of exposure to key indicators of economic, racial/ethnic, social, and structural neighborhood dimensions previously linked to the risk of violent behaviors. It focused on understanding intra-ethnic and inter-ethnic patterns of risk and protection, with particular emphasis on Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, and other Latino adolescents in the United States. Results point to ...
Seeking convergent findings in five data sets from four countries, we assess the relative importa... more Seeking convergent findings in five data sets from four countries, we assess the relative importance of adolescent skills and behaviors for completed schooling and labor market success in adulthood. We provide a framework for classifying "noncognitive" skills and use data designed by developmental psychologists to provide reliable measures of a variety of achievement and behavioral skills assessed between ages 13 and 16. Results show that adolescent achievement, particularly math achievement, is a stronger predictor of completed schooling than measures of noncognitive skills. Achievement skills also out-predict noncognitive skills with regard to adult earnings, although the differences are not as striking.
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 2014
Chronic inflammation is a potentially important physiological mechanism linking early life enviro... more Chronic inflammation is a potentially important physiological mechanism linking early life environments and health in adulthood. Elevated concentrations of C-reactive protein (CRP)-a key biomarker of inflammation-predict increased cardiovascular and metabolic disease risk in adulthood, but the developmental factors that shape the regulation of inflammation are not known. We investigated birth weight and breastfeeding duration in infancy as predictors of CRP in young adulthood in a large representative cohort study (n ¼ 6951). Birth weight was significantly associated with CRP in young adulthood, with a negative association for birth weights 2.8 kg and higher. Compared with individuals not breastfed, CRP concentrations were 20.1%, 26.7%, 29.6% and 29.8% lower among individuals breastfed for less than three months, three to six months, 6-12 months and greater than 12 months, respectively. In sibling comparison models, higher birth weight was associated with lower CRP for birth weights above 2.5 kg, and breastfeeding greater than or equal to three months was significantly associated with lower CRP. Efforts to promote breastfeeding and improve birth outcomes may have clinically relevant effects on reducing chronic inflammation and lowering risk for cardiovascular and metabolic diseases in adulthood.
Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 2009
The present study evaluated the efficacy of a multi-component classroom-based intervention in red... more The present study evaluated the efficacy of a multi-component classroom-based intervention in reducing preschoolers' behavior problems. The Chicago School Readiness Project model was implemented in 35 Head-Start classrooms, using a clustered RCT design. Results indicate significant treatment effects for teacher-reported and independent observations of children's internalizing and externalizing behavior problems, with effect sizes ranging from d =.53 to d =.89. Moreover, there was some evidence for the moderating role of child gender, race/ethnic group membership, and exposure to poverty-related risk, with stronger effects of intervention for some groups of children than for others. Findings contribute to a growing area of research on poverty and preventive intervention in early childhood.
Early Education & Development, 2010
Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 2008
American Journal of Human Biology, 2010
In light of the growing prevalence of obesity in the United States, and the health risks associat... more In light of the growing prevalence of obesity in the United States, and the health risks associated with childhood obesity in particular, it is critical to identify avenues for obesity prevention. This study tests the hypothesis that breastfeeding serves as one protective factor against children's subsequent development of obesity. We used linear-, logistic-, and sibling fixed-effects regression models to evaluate the association between infant feeding history and body mass index (BMI) in late childhood or adolescence (9-19 years, mean 5 14 years). Complete data were available for 976 participants (488 sibling pairs) in the 2002 Child Development Supplement of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, a nationally representative survey of families in the United States. In sibling pairs in which only one sibling was breastfed, the breastfed sibling had an adolescent BMI that was 0.39 standard deviations lower than his or her sibling, controlling for child-specific factors that may have influenced parents' feeding decisions. This effect is equivalent to a difference of more than 13 pounds for a 14-year-old child of average height. Furthermore, fixed-effects logistic regressions predicting overweight and obese status showed that breastfed siblings were less likely to reach those BMI thresholds. We therefore conclude that breastfeeding in infancy may be an important protective factor against the development of obesity in the United States. The application of a sibling fixed-effects model provides stronger evidence of a causal relationship than prior research reporting similar patterns of association. Am.
American journal of human biology, 2010
In light of the growing prevalence of obesity in the United States, and the health risks associat... more In light of the growing prevalence of obesity in the United States, and the health risks associated with childhood obesity in particular, it is critical to identify avenues for obesity prevention. This study tests the hypothesis that breastfeeding serves as one protective factor against children's subsequent development of obesity. We used linear-, logistic-, and sibling fixed-effects regression models to evaluate the association between infant feeding history and body mass index (BMI) in late childhood or adolescence (9–19 ...
Economics of Education Review, 2010
This paper provides detailed evidence regarding the nature of selection into a school voucher sys... more This paper provides detailed evidence regarding the nature of selection into a school voucher system. We use micro-data on scholarship applications matched with state student-level records on test scores, schools attended, and demographic background characteristics to describe the attributes of students who choose to participate in Florida's Corporate Tax Credit Scholarship Program, a means-tested scholarship program that is the largest of its type in the United States. We find evidence that those who choose to participate in the program tend to be lower-performing students from poorly performing schools, and that students of different backgrounds tend to choose different types of private schools. Students participating in the program tend to select schools that have more white students and fewer minority students, regardless of student race.