King's College London developed a test that could predict whether three-year old children will turn out to be a problem to the society when they grow up. The test could determine which ones will need excessive welfare, get obese, or end up in jail.
The scientists followed over a thousand children since they were three years old until they turned 38 to determine which ones would end up becoming a burden to society, Telegraph reported. The three-year olds were given a 45 minute test on their motor skills, language abilities, and intelligence. Their level of tolerance, impulsivity, social disadvantage, and restlessness were also assessed.
The findings show that a fifth of the population grew up to be responsible for 81 percent of crime. That 81 percent also needed 75 percent of drug prescriptions, as well as two thirds of the welfare benefit payments, and more than 50 percent of nights spent in the hospital. Also, 77 percent of those children grew up fatherless, Daily Mail reported.
The major takeaway from the study is that these outcome could have been determine through the test while the people were still at a young age of three years old.
By finding out who has the smallest grade in the test, it can be determined which ones will turn out to become burdens to the society as they grow up. With this information, interventions can be done while they are young and prevent them from becoming a problem to society.
King's College and North Carolina's Duke University professor Terrie Moffitt said that 20 percent of the people who took the exam when they were three are now taking up a big chunk of different types of public services. That same population also took advantage of most of the criminal courts, NHS, and insurance claims for injury, prescription drugs, and other social welfare benefits, Moffitt said.
According to Moffit, these people could easily be judged as free loaders exploiting tax payers money. However, if society looks further back, they would discover that these people had brain problems when they were still very young. Knowing which ones will become a burden to society as they grow up is an opportunity to intervene, he said.
