Grant: Operating Grant

The proposed research project presents unprecedented opportunities to examine social determinants of children's developmental health at a Pan-Canadian population-level. We will examine neighborhood-level associations between children's developmental health and associated socioeconomic and demographic characteristics across Canada. The analyses will draw on a database that is worldwide unique, containing geo-coded data on developmental health and socioeconomic variables from common tools: Data on children's developmental health have come from the Early Development Instrument (EDI), a tool that assesses five core domains of children's developmental health. Data on neighborhood-level socio-economic status and demographic characteristics have been obtained from Canadian Census and Taxfiler data, including variables on income, education, employment, occupation, poverty, wealth, immigration, and residential transiency. We will examine the following key research questions: First, we will analyze and compare social gradients of developmental health for virtually all jurisdictions in Canada. Second, we will analyze social determinants of developmental health across different subpopulations. Third, we will analyze neighborhood-level trends of developmental health and their associations with socioeconomic and demographic changes over time. Our analyses will allow us to answer critical research questions about children's health from a population health perspective. Given the internationally unique database and our research team's interdisciplinary expertise, the proposed project has the potential to make significant contributions to research on children's developmental health, and will have critical implications for early childhood development practice, programs, and policies.