这篇论文作者之一，是诺奖获得者、计量和劳动经济学家，芝加哥大学教授，如雷贯耳的经济学家 James·J·Heckman.
文中对近年来关于人力资本的形成、教育投资、儿童早期干预的主要理论、模型进行了综述和分析。

                    The Economics of Human Developmentand Social Mobility



This paper distills and extends recent research on the economics of human development and
social mobility. It summarizes the evidence from diverse literatures on the importance of early
life conditions in shaping multiple life skills and the evidence on critical and sensitive
investment periods for shaping different skills. It presents economic models that rationalize
the evidence and unify the treatment effect and family influence literatures. The evidence on
the empirical and policy importance of credit constraints in forming skills is examined. There
is little support for the claim that untargeted income transfer policies to poor families
significantly boost child outcomes. Mentoring, parenting, and attachment are essential
features of successful families and interventions to shape skills at all stages of childhood.
The next wave of family studies will better capture the active role of the emerging
autonomous child in learning and responding to the actions of parents, mentors and
teachers.