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Lisa A. Gennetian, Pritzker Professor of Early Learning Policy Studies and Director of Graduate Studies  

Office Location: 212 Rubenstein Hall, 302 Towerview Road, Durham, NC 27708
Duke Box: 90312
Email Address: lisa.gennetian@duke.edu
Web Page: https://www.lisagennetian.org/
Web Page: https://duke.box.com/s/571jh4v8v6ppukgvv04uz54u7vcpgnzb
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-gennetian-b8b583322/

Areas of Expertise

    Education:
    Ph.D., Cornell University, 1998
    B.A., Wellesley College, 1990

    Teaching (Spring 2026):

    • Pubpol 402s.01, Empirical methods for soc prog Synopsis
      Sanford 09, W 03:20 PM-05:50 PM
    • Pubpol 907.01, Phd student graduate seminar Synopsis
      Sanford 05, F 10:05 AM-12:35 PM

    Recent Publications   (More Publications)

    1. Troller-Renfree, SV; Costanzo, MA; Duncan, GJ; Magnuson, K; Gennetian, LA; Yoshikawa, H; Black, SR; Karhson, DS; Georgieff, MK; Nelson, JM; Nelson, TD; Fox, NA; Noble, KG. "The impact of a monthly unconditional cash transfer on child brain activity: A 4-year follow-up.." Developmental cognitive neuroscience 78 (April, 2026): 101673. [doi]  [abs]
    2. Yoo, PY; Duncan, GJ; Magnuson, KA; Fox, NA; Gennetian, LA; Noble, KG; Yoshikawa, H. "Parental investment across neighborhood contexts: Evidence from a randomized controlled trial of poverty reduction.." Child development 97.2 (March, 2026): 408-422. [doi]  [abs]
    3. Troller-Renfree, SV; Costanzo, MA; Duncan, GJ; Magnuson, K; Gennetian, LA; Yoshikawa, H; Black, S; Karhson, DS; Georgieff, MD; Nelson, JM; Nelson, T; Fox, N; Noble, KG. "The impact of a monthly unconditional cash transfer on child brain activity: A 4-year follow-up." Center for Open Science (January, 2026). [doi]
    4. Egan-Dailey, S; Gennetian, LA; Magnuson, K; Duncan, GJ; Yoshikawa, H; Fox, N; Noble, KG. "Child-directed speech in a large sample of U.S. mothers with low income." Center for Open Science (September, 2025). [doi]
    5. Keister, LA; Gibson-Davis, C; Gennetian, LA; Gibson, N. "Net Worth Poverty and Food Insecurity.." American journal of agricultural economics 107.4 (August, 2025): 1016-1040. [doi]  [abs]

    Highlight:

    Dr. Gennetian is an applied economist whose research straddles a variety of areas concerning child poverty from income security and stability to early care and education with a particular lens toward identifying causal mechanisms underlying how child poverty shapes children’s development. She is a co-PI on the first multi-site multi-year randomized control study of a monthly unconditional cash transfer to low income mothers of infants in the U.S. called Baby’s First Years. Her recent work bridges poverty scholarship with a behavioral economic framework.  “The Persistence of Poverty in the Context of Economic Instability: A Behavioral Perspective,” describes such a framework for poverty programs and policy, co-authored with Dr. Eldar Shafir and her co-authored publication “Behavioral Economics and Developmental Science,” further advances the application of behavioral economic insights to the arena of children’s development. Professor Gennetian has since launched the beELL initiative; applying insights from behavioral economics to design strategies to support parent and family engagement in, and enhance the impacts of, existing childhood interventions. Dr. Gennetian also has a body of research examining poverty among Hispanic children and families, serving as a PI on several grants and a co-PI directing work on poverty and economic self-sufficiency at the National Center for Research on Hispanic Families.

    Lisa A. Gennetian

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