The economic and psychological literatures have demonstrated that early investments (private and public) in children can significantly increase cognitive outcomes in the short and long term and contribute to success later in life. One of the most important of these inputs is maternal time....

Our study explores the impact of selection criteria on the costs and benefits of early childcare for mothers’ employment, child development, and municipalities’ revenues by exploiting the selection criteria of different Italian municipalities in assigning childcare slots. In Italy, only...

Early childhood education and care (ECEC) can bring a wide range of benefits – for children, parents and society at large. However, these benefits are conditional on “quality”. Expanding access to services without attention to quality will not deliver good outcomes for children or...

In Italy, as well as in other Southern European countries, low labor market participation rates of married women are observed together with low birth rates. Our proposed explanation for this apparent anomaly involves the Italian institutional structure, particularly as reflected in rigidities...

This series of reports suggests strengths and point to areas for further reflection on current policy initiatives. This report on the Slovak Republic focuses on improving workforce qualifications, training and working conditions. Research has shown that well-educated, well-trained professionals...