DATE: 3:30 p.m. Thursday, March 12.

EVENT: Nobel Prize-winning economist James Heckman will give a lecture on “The Economics and Psychology of Inequality and Human Development.”

Heckman is the Henry Schultz Distinguished Service Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago. His recent research deals with issues such as evaluation of social programs, the economics of the labor market, and alternative models of the distribution of income.

Recent research on the economics of human development deepens understanding of the origins of inequality and excellence. Inequalities in family environments and investments in children are substantial, Heckman says.

He also says optimal child investment strategies differ depending on target outcomes of interest and on the nature of adversity in a child’s early years.

Heckman’s visit is part of a two-day conference on the effects of early life events on later life outcomes. “The Long Run Impact of Early Life Events II” will feature economists, social epidemiologists and developmental psychologists.

PLACE: Pendleton Room, University of Michigan Union, 530 S. State St. Central Campus map: http://www.umich.edu/news/Maps/ccamp.html

SPONSORS: National Poverty Center at the U-M?s Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, Center for Human Potential and Public Policy at the University of Chicago?s Harris School of Public Policy Studies, and the Panel Study of Income Dynamics through a grant from the National Institute on Aging.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: For a list of conference speakers and their papers, visit the NPC Web site: http://npc.umich.edu/news/events/early_life/