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<p>As extracurricular activities (EAs) become increasingly common among young children, understanding their associations with developmental outcomes are critical for promoting well-being and reducing inequalities in early childhood. However, research on this topic remains limited, and findings are mixed. This study examines how EA participation is related to six early developmental domains, including social-emotional, communication, gross motor, fine motor, problem-solving, and personal-social skills, and whether these associations vary for children with different developmental levels. We employ the inverse probability weighting to address differential selection into EAs and quantile regressions to explore distributional patterns. Drawing on data from 8,112 preschoolers in Hangzhou, China, our findings indicate that EA participation is positively associated with children’s developmental outcomes. Moreover, the strength of these associations is greater for children positioned at the lower end of the developmental spectrum. These findings highlight the potential of EAs as a compensatory mechanism for reducing developmental disparities and improving the quality of life for disadvantaged children. Policy interventions aimed at improving equitable participation and fostering inclusive early childhood development were discussed at the end.</p>

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From Play To Progress: The Impact of Extracurricular Activities on Early Childhood Development and Inequality

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2025年9月12日

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  • Can Xu,
  • Gaoming Ma,
  • Jing Yuan

摘要

As extracurricular activities (EAs) become increasingly common among young children, understanding their associations with developmental outcomes are critical for promoting well-being and reducing inequalities in early childhood. However, research on this topic remains limited, and findings are mixed. This study examines how EA participation is related to six early developmental domains, including social-emotional, communication, gross motor, fine motor, problem-solving, and personal-social skills, and whether these associations vary for children with different developmental levels. We employ the inverse probability weighting to address differential selection into EAs and quantile regressions to explore distributional patterns. Drawing on data from 8,112 preschoolers in Hangzhou, China, our findings indicate that EA participation is positively associated with children’s developmental outcomes. Moreover, the strength of these associations is greater for children positioned at the lower end of the developmental spectrum. These findings highlight the potential of EAs as a compensatory mechanism for reducing developmental disparities and improving the quality of life for disadvantaged children. Policy interventions aimed at improving equitable participation and fostering inclusive early childhood development were discussed at the end.