ETHNIC-DIFFERENCES IN CHILDRENS INTELLIGENCE-TEST SCORES - ROLE OF ECONOMIC DEPRIVATION, HOME ENVIRONMENT, AND MATERNAL CHARACTERISTICS

We examine differences in intelligence test scores of black and white 5-year-olds. The Infant Health and Development Program data set includ es 483 low birthweight premature children who were assessed with the W echsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence. These children ha d been followed from birth, with data on neighborhood and family pover ty, family structure, family resources, maternal characteristics, and home environment collected over the first 5 years of life. Black child ren's IQ scores were 1 SD lower than those of white children. Adjustme nts for ethnic differences in poverty reduced the ethnic differential by 52%. Adjustments for maternal education and whether the head of hou sehold was female did not reduce the ethnic difference further. Howeve r, differences in home environment reduced the ethnic differential by an additional 28%. Adjustments for economic and social differences in the lives of black and white children all but eliminate differences in the IQ scores between these two groups.