A team of researchers from six universities, including Duke’s Sanford School of Public Policy, found in a recent study that one year of providing cash support to low-income mothers had a direct impact on children’s brain development associated with thinking and learning. Gennetian emphasized how the team aimed to answer an important causal question: “Is poverty itself negatively impacting the first few years of children’s development, including their brain development?” The families were randomly assigned to two groups: a high cash gift group that would receive $333 per month and a low cash gift group that would receive $20 per month.