A longitudinal study of two early intervention strategies: Project CARE

65 families with children at risk for cognitive difficulties were randomly assigned at the time of the child's birth to 1 of 3 groups, 2 intervention and 1 control. For the most intensive intervention group, family education was combined with a center-based educational day-care program; the less intensive intervention group received the home-based family education program only. To assess the cognitive performance of children, The Bayley Scales of Infant Development were administered at 6, 12, and 18 months; the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Test at 24, 36, and 48 months; and the McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities at 30, 42, and 54 months. On each test after the 6-month assessment, scores of children in the educational day-care plus family support group were greater than those in the other 2 groups. No cognitive intervention effects were obtained for the family education group. Group effects were not obtained for measures of either the quality of the home environment or parent attention.