Darcy Hango

THE LONG-TERM EFFECT OF CHILDHOOD RESIDENTIAL MOBILITY ON EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT

Moving during childhood has typically been found to have negative effects on educational attainment. The loss of important social relationships is likely the cause. Many studies that examine the effect of residential mobility on education take a relatively short-term view by only looking at the effect for those no older than their late teens or early 20s. However, because many family moves are beneficial to children, in terms of improving their neighborhood or home environment, it is possible that the positive effects of family mobility do not appear until much later. I examine the effect of childhood residential mobility on educational attainment using the 1986 Canadian General Social Survey for individuals aged 25 and over. Results suggest that over the long run, residential mobility in childhood is beneficial for later educational attainment in that those who move between birth and age 15 are more likely to eventually graduate from high school than those who remain in the same community.

Marital Disruption and Accidents/Injuries Among Children

A vast literature has examined the effects of marital disruption on child well-being, however medically attended childhood accidents/injuries have not been considered as an outcome. This article investigates this association as well as possible intervening pathways using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth-linked mother-child file. Findings reveal that marital disruption decreases girls’ accidents/injuries. Boys are not directly affected. Parenting practices, childhood aggression, and precipitous drops in household income appear to do little to the relationship between marital disruption and childhood accidents/injuries for boys. For girls, however, the potential benefits of a marital disruption are suppressed until considering mother’s use of discipline and household income decline. Results are discussed in terms of stress theory and the effect of mother-daughter versus mother-son dynamics following marital disruption.

The Impact of Marital Conflict and Disruption on Children’s Health

This article investigates the effect of inconsistency between parental marital conflict and disruption on children’s health. Inconsistent situations arise when minimal marital conflict precedes disruption or when marital conflict is high but there is no disruption. Using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, two alternative hypotheses, the stress vulnerable hypothesis and the stress resistant hypothesis, are tested. The latter hypothesis is based on recent evidence in the medical field. The results support the stress resistant hypothesis in that boys’ health is enhanced when there is inconsistency between marital conflict and disruption. There are no significant effects for girls. The widespread notion that marital conflict and disruption have only adverse effects for children is challenged by the findings in this study.

The Effect of Education on Early Parenthood among Young Canadian Adults

We use the Youth in Transition Survey (YITS) to examine the link between education and early parenthood in Canada. Estimates from proportional hazard models reveal that the exit from fulltime schooling increases the risk of becoming a young parent. However, this risk is tempered by the level of education achieved. Other measures related to education indicate that skipping classes increases the risk of early parenthood for men and women, whereas having peers committed to education reduces the risk for both. Yet higher educational aspirations and more extra curricular activities reduce the risk of parenthood, but for women only.