A new set of studies led by lab director Dr. Jorge Cuartas, together with Lenin Balza (IDB), Andrés Camacho (University of Chicago), and Nicolás Gómez (IDB), shows that atypically high temperatures—that is, temperatures above what is usual for a given region and season—negatively affect early childhood development, particularly foundational literacy and numeracy skills. The studies also find that extreme heat may increase the risk of violence against children within the home, which may represent a potential pathway linking temperature exposure to adverse developmental outcomes.

Below, we present a visual summary of these studies. The papers are published in (1) The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and (2) Psychology of Violence.