IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/dem/demres/v40y2019i6.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Race/ethnic inequalities in early adolescent development in the United Kingdom and United States

Author

Listed:
  • Afshin Zilanawala

    (University of Southampton)

  • Laia Bécares

    (University of Manchester)

  • Aprile Benner

    (University of Texas at Austin)

Abstract

Background: Comparative literature investigating race/ethnic patterning of children’s health has found racial/ethnic minority status to be linked to health disadvantages. Less is known about differences during early adolescence, a period during which health outcomes are linked to later life health. Objective: Using the UK Millennium Cohort Study (n = 10,188) and the US Early Childhood Longitudinal Survey–Kindergarten Cohort (n ~ 6,950), we examine differences in socioemotional and cognitive development among 11-year-old adolescents and the contribution of family resources in explaining any observed differences, including socioeconomic, cultural traditions, and psychosocial resources. Results: Adverse socioemotional health and cognitive development were associated with race/ethnic minority status in both countries. In the United States, we found that cultural resources and family socioeconomic capital played a large role in attenuating differences in problem behaviors between Asian American, Black, and Latino adolescents and their White peers. In the United Kingdom, the explanatory factors explaining differences in problem behaviors varied by racial/ethnic group. In both contexts, family resources cannot explain the sizable cross-country differences in verbal skills. In the United Kingdom, Indian adolescents had nearly one-third of a standard deviation increase in their verbal scores whereas in the United States, Black and Latino adolescents had scores nearly two-fifths and one-fifth of a standard deviation below the mean, respectively. Contribution: We use a detailed race/ethnic classification in the investigation of racial/ethnic inequalities across the United States and United Kingdom. There are strong family resource effects, suggesting that relative family advantages and disadvantages do have meaningful associations with adolescent socioemotional and cognitive development. Although levels of resources do explain some cross-national differences, there appears to be a broader range of family background variables in the United Kingdom that influence adolescent development. Our findings point to the critical role of both the extent and nature of family social capital in affecting adolescent development.

Suggested Citation

  • Afshin Zilanawala & Laia Bécares & Aprile Benner, 2019. "Race/ethnic inequalities in early adolescent development in the United Kingdom and United States," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 40(6), pages 121-154.
    • Handle: RePEc:dem:demres:v:40:y:2019:i:6
    DOI: 10.4054/DemRes.2019.40.6
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.demographic-research.org/volumes/vol40/6/40-6.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.4054/DemRes.2019.40.6?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Pamela E. Davis-Kean & Justin Jager, 2014. "Trajectories of Achievement Within Race/Ethnicity: "Catching Up" in Achievement Across Time," The Journal of Educational Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 107(3), pages 197-208, May.
    2. Janet Currie & Mark Stabile, 2007. "Mental Health in Childhood and Human Capital," NBER Chapters, in: The Problems of Disadvantaged Youth: An Economic Perspective, pages 115-148, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Claessens, Amy & Duncan, Greg & Engel, Mimi, 2009. "Kindergarten skills and fifth-grade achievement: Evidence from the ECLS-K," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 28(4), pages 415-427, August.
    4. Fagg, James & Curtis, Sarah & Stansfeld, Stephen & Congdon, Peter, 2006. "Psychological distress among adolescents, and its relationship to individual, family and area characteristics in East London," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 63(3), pages 636-648, August.
    5. Katherine Magnuson & Claudia Lahaie & Jane Waldfogel, 2006. "Preschool and School Readiness of Children of Immigrants," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 87(s1), pages 1241-1262.
    6. Timothy M. Smeeding, 2005. "Public Policy, Economic Inequality, and Poverty: The United States in Comparative Perspective," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 86(s1), pages 955-983, December.
    7. Alberto Palloni, 2006. "Reproducing inequalities: Luck, wallets, and the enduring effects of childhood health," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 43(4), pages 587-615, November.
    8. Frank W. Heiland & Shirley H. Liu, 2006. "Family structure and wellbeing of out-of-wedlock children," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 15(4), pages 61-104.
    9. Currie, Janet & Stabile, Mark, 2006. "Child mental health and human capital accumulation: The case of ADHD," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 25(6), pages 1094-1118, November.
    10. Han, Wen-Jui & Lee, RaeHyuck & Waldfogel, Jane, 2012. "School readiness among children of immigrants in the US: Evidence from a large national birth cohort study," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 34(4), pages 771-782.
    11. Office of Health Economics, 2007. "The Economics of Health Care," For School 001490, Office of Health Economics.
    12. Claire Jean Kim, 1999. "The Racial Triangulation of Asian Americans," Politics & Society, , vol. 27(1), pages 105-138, March.
    13. Roland G. Fryer & Steven D. Levitt, 2004. "Understanding the Black-White Test Score Gap in the First Two Years of School," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 86(2), pages 447-464, May.
    14. Deborah Phillips, 1998. "Black Minority Ethnic Concentration, Segregation and Dispersal in Britain," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 35(10), pages 1681-1702, October.
    15. West, Patrick, 1997. "Health inequalities in the early years: Is there equalisation in youth?," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 44(6), pages 833-858, March.
    16. Nazroo, J.Y., 2003. "The structuring of ethnic inequalities in health: Economic position, racial discrimination, and racism," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 93(2), pages 277-284.
    17. Abraído-Lanza, A.F. & Dohrenwend, B.P. & Ng-Mak, D.S. & Turner, J.B., 1999. "The Latino mortality paradox: A test of the 'salmon bias' and healthy migrant hypotheses," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 89(10), pages 1543-1548.
    18. Suzanne Bianchi, 2000. "Maternal employment and time with children: Dramatic change or surprising continuity?," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 37(4), pages 401-414, November.
    19. Frank Heiland & Shirley H. Liu, 2005. "Family Structure and Wellbeing of Out-of-Wedlock Children: The Significance of the Biological Parents' Relationship," Working Papers 0612, University of Miami, Department of Economics, revised Sep 2006.
    20. Katherine Magnuson & Claudia Lahaie & Jane Waldfogel, 2006. "Preschool and School Readiness of Children of Immigrants," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 87(5), pages 1241-1262, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Attanasio, Orazio & Blundell, Richard & Conti, Gabriella & Mason, Giacomo, 2020. "Inequality in socio-emotional skills: A cross-cohort comparison," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 191(C).
    2. Han, Yoonsun & Kim, Seonyeong & Lee, Taekho & Kim, Suna, 2024. "Family factors and offline/online risk behaviors among South Korean adolescents: A multidimensional approach using latent profile analysis," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 156(C).
    3. Martínez-Jiménez, Mario & Hollingsworth, Bruce & Zucchelli, Eugenio, 2024. "Socioeconomic deprivation, health and healthcare utilisation among millennials," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 351(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Zilanawala, Afshin & Sacker, Amanda & Nazroo, James & Kelly, Yvonne, 2015. "Ethnic differences in children's socioemotional difficulties: Findings from the Millennium Cohort Study," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 134(C), pages 95-106.
    2. Margot I. Jackson & Tate Kihara, 2019. "The Educational Gradient in Health Among Children in Immigrant Families," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 38(6), pages 869-897, December.
    3. Johnson, Anna D. & Padilla, Christina M. & Votruba-Drzal, Elizabeth, 2017. "Predictors of public early care and education use among children of low-income immigrants," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 73(C), pages 24-36.
    4. Elizabeth Baker & Michael Rendall & Margaret Weden, 2015. "Epidemiological Paradox or Immigrant Vulnerability? Obesity Among Young Children of Immigrants," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 52(4), pages 1295-1320, August.
    5. Jeffrey S. DeSimone, 2010. "Sadness, Suicidality and Grades," NBER Working Papers 16239, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    6. Fali Huang, 2006. "What Matter for Child Development?," Working Papers 24-2006, Singapore Management University, School of Economics.
    7. Pritha Dev & Blessing U. Mberu & Roland Pongou, 2016. "Ethnic Inequality: Theory and Evidence from Formal Education in Nigeria," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 64(4), pages 603-660.
    8. Pilarz, Alejandra Ros & Lin, Ying-Chun & Premo, Elizabeth M., 2024. "Family engagement practices and children’s attendance and early learning skills in a public pre-kindergarten program," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 163(C).
    9. Ilyana Kuziemko & Katherine Meckel & Maya Rossin-Slater, 2013. "Do Insurers Risk-Select Against Each Other? Evidence from Medicaid and Implications for Health Reform," NBER Working Papers 19198, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    10. Fang, Xiangming & Tarui, Nori, 2015. "Child Maltreatment, Family Characteristics, and Educational Attainment: Evidence from Add Health Data," 2015 AAEA & WAEA Joint Annual Meeting, July 26-28, San Francisco, California 205319, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    11. Han, Wen-Jui & Lee, RaeHyuck & Waldfogel, Jane, 2012. "School readiness among children of immigrants in the US: Evidence from a large national birth cohort study," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 34(4), pages 771-782.
    12. Dinand Webbink & Sunčica Vujić & Pierre Koning & Nicholas G. Martin, 2012. "The Effect Of Childhood Conduct Disorder On Human Capital," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 21(8), pages 928-945, August.
    13. David Johnston & Carol Propper & Stephen Pudney & Michael Shields, 2014. "Child Mental Health And Educational Attainment: Multiple Observers And The Measurement Error Problem," Journal of Applied Econometrics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(6), pages 880-900, September.
    14. Johnston, David W. & Schurer, Stefanie & Shields, Michael A., 2011. "Evidence on the Long Shadow of Poor Mental Health across Three Generations," IZA Discussion Papers 6014, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    15. Dev, Pritha & Mberu, Blessing & Pongou, Roland, 2013. "Communitarianism, Oppositional Cultures, and Human Capital Contagion: Theory and Evidence from Formal versus Koranic Education," MPRA Paper 46234, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 15 Apr 2013.
    16. Michelle L. Frisco & Susana Quiros & Jennifer Hook, 2016. "One Size May Not Fit All: How Obesity Among Mexican-Origin Youth Varies by Generation, Gender, and Age," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 53(6), pages 2031-2043, December.
    17. Jochimsen, Beate & Fendel, Tanja, 2022. "Home Care Allowance and Labor Market Participation of Immigrant and Native-Born Mothers," VfS Annual Conference 2022 (Basel): Big Data in Economics 264104, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    18. Kertesi, Gábor & Kézdi, Gábor & Hajdu, Tamás, 2022. "Idő és pénz a gyermeknevelésben Magyarországon, 1993-2010 [Time and money in raising children in Hungary, 1993-2010]," Közgazdasági Szemle (Economic Review - monthly of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences), Közgazdasági Szemle Alapítvány (Economic Review Foundation), vol. 0(11), pages 1255-1297.
    19. Neidell, Matthew & Waldfogel, Jane, 2009. "Program participation of immigrant children: Evidence from the local availability of Head Start," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 28(6), pages 704-715, December.
    20. Shirley H. Liu & Frank Heiland, 2012. "Should We Get Married? The Effect Of Parents' Marriage On Out‐Of‐Wedlock Children," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 50(1), pages 17-38, January.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Millennium Cohort Study (MCS); racial/ethnic differences; inequalities; cohort studies; child health; adolescence; Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (ECLS);
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J1 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics
    • Z0 - Other Special Topics - - General

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:dem:demres:v:40:y:2019:i:6. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Editorial Office (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.demogr.mpg.de/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.