Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Disruption in Parental Co-habitation and its Effects on Short-Term, Medium-Term, and Long-Term Outcomes of Adolescents

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Family and Economic Issues Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

In this paper the relationships between a disruption in parental co-habitation and various categories of adolescent outcomes over multiple time horizons are explored. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), we estimated the effects of a change from living with both parents to just one, on academic and employment outcomes, the likelihood to indulge in risky behaviors, mental health outcomes and body mass index measures, from less than 1 year to over 14 years after the change. Propensity score matching methods were used to control for individual characteristics and pre-existing differences in the family environment that may increase the chances of separation, and the results are compared to those obtained using ordinary least squares or probit methods. Results showed evidence of adverse effects of living with one parent in the short term, medium term and long term. Adolescents living with one parent had lower academic achievement in all term lengths, poor mental health in the short to medium term, and were more likely to engage in risky behaviors in the medium to long term.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. For example, Cid and Stokes (2011) looked at the role of parental separation on school drop-out behavior, while Couch and Lillard (1997) investigated much longer-term intergenerational correlation in adult earnings as a function of parental divorce.

  2. Tumin et al. (2014) found that the vast majority of all marital separations end in divorce. Further, they found that separations leading to divorce are relatively short —8 to 9 months. Using samples from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, 1979, and the National Surveys of Family Growth, they found that between 2 and 4 % of marital disruptions among women are caused by widowhood.

  3. For example, see Basu et al. (2008), Dehejia and Wahba (2002), Heckman et al. (1998), Imbens (2000) and Rosenbaum and Rubin (1983).

  4. The correlation between the BMI’s calculated from self-reported weights and heights in Wave III is 0.78. Note that these waves are 5 years apart, so there may be some changes in both height and weight across these years. Also, using a rough guideline of defining obesity as having a BMI ≥30, binary variables on obesity were created for Waves II and III. The correlation between Waves III and IV is 0.6113. The correlation between Waves II and IV is 0.3625. Note that Waves III and IV are 7 years apart and Waves II and IV are 12 years apart.

  5. All of relevant data to construct the “Depressed” variable is not available in Waves III and IV.

  6. While constructing this variable, apart from the presence of both biological parents, we also included the presence of two foster parents or adoptive parents.

  7. The correlation between the parent answering as not divorced, separated, or single in Wave I and student reporting that both parents are together in Wave I was 0.594. However, the analysis is limited to students whose parents separate between Waves I and II (in order to develop a treatment group). Wave II does not have a parent questionnaire, so a switch in status from the parents’ perspective was not observed.

  8. It is acknowledged that some of these variables may have endogeneity and unobserved heterogeneity issues, which could bias the coefficients on these independent variables. However, there should be no major effect of this endogeneity on the variable of interest which is parental separation.

  9. In the interest of conserving space, we do not report the coefficients of all the covariates in the OLS and probit regressions, especially the ones whose coefficients were not statistically significant in any of the regressions. However, a full list of coefficients of all covariates is available upon request.

  10. We did not use lagged dependent variables due to attenuation bias (see Maddala and Rao 1973). However, the results using the lagged dependent variables are available upon request.

  11. We also checked the robustness of these two methods using one-nearest and three-nearest neighbors matching, along with normal and Epanechnikov kernels, and these results were similar. These results are available upon request.

References

  • Allen, B., Nunley, J., & Seals, A. (2011). The effect of joint-child-custody legislation on the child-support receipt of single mothers. Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 32, 124–139. doi:10.1007/s10834-010-9193-4.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Amato, P. R. (2000). The consequences of divorce for adults and children. Journal of Marriage and Family, 62, 1269–1287. doi:10.1111/j.1741-3737.2000.01269.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Amato, P. R., & Booth, A. (1997). A generation at risk: Growing up in an era of family upheaval. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Amato, P. R., & Keith, B. (1991). Consequences of parental divorce on children’s well-being: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 110, 26–46. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/353132. Accessed 24 Nov 2014.

  • Bane, M. J., & Jargowsky, P. (1988). The links between government policy and family structure: what matters and what doesn’t. In A. J. Cherlin (Ed.), The changing American family and public policy (pp. 219–255). Washington DC: Urban Institute Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Basu, A., Polsky, D., & Manning, W. (2008). Use of propensity scores in non-linear response models: the case for health care expenditures. NBER WP14086, National Bureau of Economic Research. Retrieved from http://www.nber.org/papers/w14086.pdf. Accessed 24 Nov 2014.

  • Brown, S. L. (2006). Family structure transitions and adolescent well-being. Demography, 43, 447–461. doi:10.1353/dem.2006.0021.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chase-Lansdale, P. L., Cherlin, A.J., & Kiernan, K.E. (1995). The long-term effects of parental divorce on the mental health of young adults: A developmental perspective. Child Development, 66, 1614–1634. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/1131900. Accessed 24 Nov 2014.

  • Cherlin, A.J., Kiernan, K.E., & Chase-Lansdale, P.L. (1995). Parental divorce in childhood and demographic outcomes in young adulthood. Demography, 32, 229–318. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/2061682. Accessed 24 Nov 2014.

  • Cid, A., & Stokes, C. (2013). Family structure and children’s education outcome: Evidence from Uruguay. Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 34, 185–199. doi:10.1007/s10834-012-9326-z.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Corak, M. (2001). Death and divorce: The long-term consequences of parental loss on adolescents. Journal of Labor Economics, 19, 682–715. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/322078. Accessed 24 Nov 2014.

  • Dehejia, R. H., & Wahba, S. (2002). Propensity score-matching for non-experimental causal studies. The Review of Economics and Statistics, 84, 151–161. doi:10.1162/003465302317331982.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Downey, D. B. (1994). The school performance of children from single-mother and single-father families: Economic or interpersonal deprivation? Journal of Family Issues, 15, 129–147. doi:10.1177/019251394015001006.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dronkers, J. (1999). The effects of parental conflicts and divorce on the well-being of pupils in Dutch secondary education. European Sociological Review, 15, 195–212. Retrieved from http://apps.eui.eu/Personal/Dronkers/articles/europeansociologicalreview1999.pdf. Accessed 24 Nov 2014.

  • Entwisle, D. R., & Alexander, K.L. (1996). Family type and children’s growth in reading and math over the primary grades. Journal of Marriage and Family, 58, 734–746. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/353500. Accessed 24 Nov 2014.

  • Ermisch, J. F., & Francesconi, M. (2001). Family structure and children’s achievements. Journal of Population Economics, 14, 249–270. doi:10.1007/s001480000028.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fletcher, J. M. (2008). Adolescent depression: Diagnosis, treatment, and educational attainment. Health Economics, 17, 1215–1235. doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2008.12.005.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fletcher, J. M. (2009). Childhood mistreatment and adolescent and young adult depression. Social Science and Medicine, 68, 799–806. doi:10.1002/hec.1319.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Frisco, M. L., Muller, C., & Frank, K. (2007). Parents’ union dissolution and adolescents’ school performance: Comparing methodological approaches. Journal of Marriage and Family, 69, 721–741. doi:10.1111/j.1741-3737.2007.00402.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heckman, J. J., Ichimura, H., & Todd, P. (1998). Matching as an econometric evaluation estimator. The Review of Economic Studies, 65, 261–294. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/2971733. Accessed 24 Nov 2014.

  • Hofferth, S., & Pinzon, A. (2011). Do nonresidential fathers’ financial support and contact improve children’s health? Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 32, 280–295. doi:10.1007/s10834-010-9237-9.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hussey, A.J., Kanjilal, D., & Okunade, A.A. (2013). Effects of peers and social environment on adolescent psychological well-being. International Journal of Business and Social Research, 3, 69–83. Retrieved from http://thejournalofbusiness.org/index.php/site/article/view/75/74. Accessed 24 Nov 2014.

  • Imbens, G. W. (2000). The role of the propensity score in estimating dose-response functions. Biometrika, 87, 706–710. doi:10.1093/biomet/87.3.706.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Keith, V.M., & Finlay, B. (1988). The impact of parental divorce on children’s educational attainment, marital timing and likelihood of divorce. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 50, 797–809. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/352648. Accessed 24 Nov 2014.

  • Kohn, J., & Averett, S. (2014). Can’t we just live together? New evidence on the effect of relationship status on health. Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 35, 295–312. doi:10.1007/s10834-013-9371-2.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lang, K., & Zagorsky, J.L. (2001). Does growing up with a parent absent really hurt? The Journal of Human Resources, 36, 253–273. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/3069659. Accessed 24 Nov 2014.

  • Maddala, G.S., & Rao, A.S. (1973). Tests for serial correlation in regression models with lagged dependent variables and serially correlated errors. Econometrica, 41, 761–774. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/1914095. Accessed 24 Nov 2014.

  • Manski, C.F., Sandefur, G.D., McLanahan, S., & Powers, D. (1992). Alternative estimates of the effect of family structure during adolescence on high school graduation. Journal of the American Statistical Association, 87, 25–37. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/2290448. Accessed 24 Nov 2014.

  • Marsh, H. W. (1990). Two-parent, stepparent, and single-parent families: Changes in achievement, attitudes, and behaviors during the last two years of high school. Journal of Educational Psychology, 82, 327–340. doi:10.1037/0022-0663.82.2.327.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mayer, S. (1997). What money can’t buy: Family income and children’s life chances. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • McLanahan, S., & Sandefur, G. D. (1994). Growing up with a single parent: What hurts, what helps. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Myers, S., & Myers, C. (2014). Family structure and school-based parental involvement: A family resource perspective. Journal of Family & Economic Issues. doi:10.1007/s10834-014-9409-0.

  • Radloff, L. (1977). The CES-D scale: A self report depression scale for research in the general population. Applied Psychological Measurement, 1, 385–401. doi:10.1177/014662167700100306.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roberts, R., Lewinsohn, P., & Seeley, J. (1991). Screening for adolescent depression: A comparison of depression scales. Journal of the American Academy for Child Adolescent Psychiatry, 30, 58–66. doi:10.1097/00004583-199101000-00009.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rosenbaum, P. R., & Rubin, D.B. (1983). The central role of the propensity score in observational studies for causal effects. Biometrika, 70, 41–45. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/2335942. Accessed 24 Nov 2014.

  • Sabia, J. (2007). The effect of body weight on adolescent academic performance. Southern Economic Journal, 73, 871–900. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/20111933. Accessed 24 Nov 2014.

  • Sanz-De-Galdeano, A., & Vuri, D. (2007). Parental divorce and students’ performance: Evidence from longitudinal data. Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, 69, 321–338. doi:10.1111/j.1468-0084.2006.00199.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schramm, D. (2005). Individual and social costs of divorce in Utah. Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 27, 133–151. doi:10.1007/s10834-005-9005-4.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tumin, D., Han, S., & Qian, Z. (2014). Meanings and measures of marital separation. Working paper. Retrieved from http://paa2014.princeton.edu/papers/141524. Accessed 24 Nov 2014.

Download references

Acknowledgments

The research uses data from Add Health, a program project designed by J. Richard Udry, Peter S. Bearman, and Kathleen Mullan Harris, and funded by a Grant P01-HD31921 from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, with cooperative funding from 17 other agencies. Special acknowledgment is due Ronald Rindfuss and Barbara Entwisle for assistance in the original design. Persons interested in obtaining Data Files from Add Health should contact Add Health, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Carolina Population Center, 123 W. Franklin Street, Chapel Hill, NC 27516-2524 (addhealth@unc.edu). No direct support was received from grant P01-HD31921 for this analysis.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Economics, University of Memphis, 423 Fogelman Administration Building, Memphis, TN, 38152, USA

    Andrew Hussey

  2. Department of Business & Economics, Elizabeth City State University, Campus Box 781, 1704 Weeksville Rd, Elizabeth City, NC, 27909, USA

    Debjani Kanjilal

  3. Department of Economics and Accounting, College of the Holy Cross, 1 College St, Worcester, MA, 01610, USA

    Anil Nathan

Authors
  1. Andrew Hussey
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Debjani Kanjilal
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Anil Nathan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Debjani Kanjilal.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Hussey, A., Kanjilal, D. & Nathan, A. Disruption in Parental Co-habitation and its Effects on Short-Term, Medium-Term, and Long-Term Outcomes of Adolescents. J Fam Econ Iss 37, 58–74 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10834-014-9435-y

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10834-014-9435-y

Keywords

JEL Classification

Search

Navigation