U.S. views on child development stand out from the global norm

Washington, DC, March 22, 2021 — A new global Ipsos study finds differences in how Americans tend to view child development compared to people in other countries. Americans are more likely than their counterparts in most of 28 countries surveyed to consider: (a) that the responsibility to give children under the age of 6 the best chance of health and happiness falls mostly on parents rather than on everyone in society; and (b) that children’s development from the start of pregnancy to the age of 5 is influenced both by their genetic make-up and their environment as opposed to primarily one or the other. Americans are among those least likely to view the period from the start of pregnancy through age 5 as the most important for someone’s health and happiness in adulthood.

The survey was conducted among more than 23,000 adults under the age of 75 from December 23, 2020 to January 8, 2021, on Ipsos’ Global Advisor online platform. This is the first time that a global comparative survey looking at perceptions of the early years in different countries has taken place and builds off the work Ipsos conducted in the UK for The Royal Foundation in 2019/2020.

Detailed Findings

The importance of the early years

• The science is clear: the early years of a child’s life sets the foundations for their health and happiness as they grow up into an adult. However, Americans do not tend to single out the early years as being uniquely important for children and young people’s health and happiness, compared with other periods of life.
• Only 15% of Americans believe the period from conception to age 5 is the most important period of a child and young person’s life for health and happiness in adulthood, which is slightly less than the average across the 28 countries surveyed (18%). Americans are more likely to say all periods between conception to age 24 are equally important (39%) or to select the period spanning ages 6 to 11 (22%).
• The countries with the highest proportions of people saying the early years are the most important period are Peru (28%) and Germany (26%), while China (6%) and Spain (8%) have the smallest proportions.

There is overwhelming recognition in the United States that children’s development is not solely determined at birth and can be shaped by their environment.

• Among all countries, the U.S. shows both the smallest proportion of people who believe that children’s development from the start of pregnancy is wholly determined by their genes (2% vs. a global average of 6%) and the second-smallest proportion saying it is determined by their environment (22% vs. a global average of 37%).
• Compared with people in all other countries surveyed, Americans are those most likely to believe that both their genetic makeup (“nature”) and their environment (“nurture”) shape how children develop (70%, over 20 percentage points more than the global average of 49%).
• The country where children’s development is most widely seen to be a function of their environment is Italy (53%), followed by Mexico, Peru, and Chile (50% in all three).

A majority of Americans believe it is the responsibility of parents to give a child the best chance of health and happiness.

• Fifty-five percent of Americans surveyed believe that it is mostly the responsibility of parents to give children aged 0-5 the best chance of health and happiness. This is much higher than the global average of 40% and is second among the 28 countries surveyed, trailing only Poland (58%).
• Only 9% of Americans believe it is mostly society’s responsibility to give children the best chance of happiness, while 28% believe that parents and society are equally responsible.
• The countries with the largest proportions of adults surveyed saying society has more responsibility than parents are China (27%), India (24%), and Saudi Arabia (20%).

About the Study

These are the results of a 28-market survey conducted by Ipsos on its Global Advisor online platform. Ipsos interviewed a total of 23,004 adults aged 18-74 in Singapore, 18-74 in the United States, Canada, Malaysia, South Africa, and Turkey, 21-74 in Singapore, and 16-74 in 22 other markets between December 23, 2020 and January 8, 2021.

The sample consists of approximately 1,000 individuals in each of Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, mainland China, France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Japan, Spain, and the U.S., and 500 individuals in each of Argentina, Chile, Hungary, India, Malaysia, Mexico, the Netherlands, Peru, Poland, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Sweden, and Turkey.

The samples in Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, Hungary, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Poland, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, and the U.S. can be taken as representative of their general adult population under the age of 75.

The samples in Brazil, Chile, mainland China, India, Israel, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, and Turkey are more urban, more educated, and/or more affluent than the general population. The survey results for these markets should be viewed as reflecting the views of the more “connected” segment of their population.

The data is weighted so that each country’s sample composition best reflects the demographic profile of the adult population according to the most recent census data.

The “Global Average” reflects the average result for all the countries where the survey was conducted. It has not been adjusted to the population size of each country and is not intended to suggest a total result.

Where results do not sum to 100 or the ‘difference’ appears to be +/-1 more/less than the actual, this may be due to rounding, multiple responses, or the exclusion of “don’t know” or not stated responses.

The precision of Ipsos online polls is calculated using a credibility interval with a poll of 1,000 accurate to +/- 3.5 percentage points and of 500 accurate to +/- 5.0 percentage points. For more information on Ipsos’ use of credibility intervals, please visit the Ipsos website.

The publication of these findings abides by local rules and regulations.

For more information on this news release, please contact:

Nicolas Boyon
Senior Vice President, Public Affairs, U.S.
Ipsos
+1 646 309-4879
[email protected]

Kate Silverstein
Media Relations Specialist, U.S., Public Affairs
Ipsos
+1 718 755-8829
[email protected]

About Ipsos

Ipsos is the world’s third largest Insights and Analytics company, present in 90 markets and employing more than 18,000 people.

Our passionately curious research professionals, analysts and scientists have built unique multi-specialist capabilities that provide true understanding and powerful insights into the actions, opinions and motivations of citizens, consumers, patients, customers or employees. We serve more than 5000 clients across the world with 75 business solutions.

Founded in France in 1975, Ipsos is listed on the Euronext Paris since July 1st, 1999. The company is part of the SBF 120 and the Mid-60 index and is eligible for the Deferred Settlement Service (SRD).

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