IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/asiaps/v13y2026i1ne70057.html

What Happens to the Learning Outcomes of Left‐Behind Children When Parents are Away? Evidence From Four Pacific Island Countries

Author

Listed:
  • Trang Thu Vu
  • Daniel Suryadarma

Abstract

Parentsʼ migration that leaves their children behind can have a large influence on their children. We explore the relationship between parental migration and learning outcomes of left‐behind children aged 7–14 in Pacific Island Economies, particularly Fiji, Kiribati, Samoa, and Tonga, comparing children who live without at least one parent due to migration and children who live with both parents. We use propensity score matching on the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 6 data. We observe mixed findings of parental migration on childrenʼs learning outcomes, depending on the country, family structure, and gender. Our results show no significant differences between children of migrants and non‐migrants in Fiji, Kiribati, and Tonga. In Samoa, children of migrants have significantly higher reading skills but struggle in mathematics. Samoaʼs strong extended family system appears to provide compensatory caregiving and educational support in the absence of parents. We also find that the effects in Samoa are isolated among girls. The role of extended family support, cultural norms, and gender dynamics are critical to understanding the findings. These insights have important implications for policies aiming to support left‐behind children and leverage migration for human capital development.

Suggested Citation

  • Trang Thu Vu & Daniel Suryadarma, 2026. "What Happens to the Learning Outcomes of Left‐Behind Children When Parents are Away? Evidence From Four Pacific Island Countries," Asia and the Pacific Policy Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 13(1), January.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:asiaps:v:13:y:2026:i:1:n:e70057
    DOI: 10.1002/app5.70057
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/app5.70057
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1002/app5.70057?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. Gharad Bryan & Shyamal Chowdhury & Ahmed Mushfiq Mobarak, 2014. "Underinvestment in a Profitable Technology: The Case of Seasonal Migration in Bangladesh," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 82(5), pages 1671-1748, September.
    2. Pablo Acosta, 2011. "School Attendance, Child Labour, and Remittances from International Migration in El Salvador," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 47(6), pages 913-936.
    3. Gibson, John & McKenzie, David & Stillman, Steven, 2011. "What happens to diet and child health when migration splits households? Evidence from a migration lottery program," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(1), pages 7-15, February.
    4. Xin Meng & Chikako Yamauchi, 2017. "Children of Migrants: The Cumulative Impact of Parental Migration on Children’s Education and Health Outcomes in China," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 54(5), pages 1677-1714, October.
    5. Antman, Francisca M., 2011. "The intergenerational effects of paternal migration on schooling and work: What can we learn from children's time allocations?," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 96(2), pages 200-208, November.
    6. Carletto, Calogero & Covarrubias, Katia & Maluccio, John A., 2011. "Migration and child growth in rural Guatemala," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(1), pages 16-27, February.
    7. Adnan M. S. Fakir & Naveen Abedin, 2021. "Empowered by Absence: Does Male Out-migration Empower Female Household Heads Left Behind?," Journal of International Migration and Integration, Springer, vol. 22(2), pages 503-527, June.
    8. John Gibson & David McKenzie & Steven Stillman, 2011. "The Impacts of International Migration on Remaining Household Members: Omnibus Results from a Migration Lottery Program," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 93(4), pages 1297-1318, November.
    9. J. Edward Taylor, 2010. "Agricultural Labor and Migration Policy," Annual Review of Resource Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 2(1), pages 369-393, October.
    10. David McKenzie & Hillel Rapoport, 2011. "Can migration reduce educational attainment? Evidence from Mexico," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 24(4), pages 1331-1358, October.
    11. Guido W. Imbens, 2015. "Matching Methods in Practice: Three Examples," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 50(2), pages 373-419.
    12. Khatia Antia & Johannes Boucsein & Andreas Deckert & Peter Dambach & Justina Račaitė & Genė Šurkienė & Thomas Jaenisch & Olaf Horstick & Volker Winkler, 2020. "Effects of International Labour Migration on the Mental Health and Well-Being of Left-Behind Children: A Systematic Literature Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(12), pages 1-17, June.
    13. Chang, Fang & Jiang, Yuxi & Loyalka, Prashant & Chu, James & Shi, Yaojiang & Osborn, Annie & Rozelle, Scott, 2019. "Parental migration, educational achievement, and mental health of junior high school students in rural China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 337-349.
    14. Basu, Kaushik & Das, Sanghamitra & Dutta, Bhaskar, 2010. "Child labor and household wealth: Theory and empirical evidence of an inverted-U," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 91(1), pages 8-14, January.
    15. John Gibson & David McKenzie, 2014. "The Development Impact of a Best Practice Seasonal Worker Policy," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 96(2), pages 229-243, May.
    16. Stark, Oded & Taylor, J Edward, 1991. "Migration Incentives, Migration Types: The Role of Relative Deprivation," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 101(408), pages 1163-1178, September.
    17. Sascha O. Becker & Marco Caliendo, 2007. "Sensitivity analysis for average treatment effects," Stata Journal, StataCorp LLC, vol. 7(1), pages 71-83, February.
    18. Oded Stark, 1991. "The Migration of Labor," Blackwell Books, Wiley Blackwell, number 1557860300.
    19. Lara Cockx, 2022. "Moving toward a Better Future? Migration and Children’s Health and Education," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 70(3), pages 1229-1293.
    20. World Bank, 2023. "World Development Report 2023: Migrants, Refugees, and Societies [Rapport sur le développement dans le monde 2023 : Migrants, réfugiés et société]," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 39696, April.
    21. Verónica Frisancho Robles & R. Oropesa, 2011. "International Migration and the Education of Children: Evidence from Lima, Peru," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 30(4), pages 591-618, August.
    22. John Gibson & Rochelle-Lee Bailey, 2021. "Seasonal Labor Mobility in the Pacific: Past Impacts, Future Prospects," Asian Development Review, MIT Press, vol. 38(1), pages 1-31, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Viet Nguyen, Cuong, 2016. "Does parental migration really benefit left-behind children? Comparative evidence from Ethiopia, India, Peru and Vietnam," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 153(C), pages 230-239.
    2. Francisca M. Antman, 2013. "The impact of migration on family left behind," Chapters, in: Amelie F. Constant & Klaus F. Zimmermann (ed.), International Handbook on the Economics of Migration, chapter 16, pages 293-308, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    3. Davis, Jason & Brazil, Noli, 2016. "Disentangling fathers’ absences from household remittances in international migration: The case of educational attainment in Guatemala," International Journal of Educational Development, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 1-11.
    4. Koska, Onur A. & Saygin, Perihan Özge & Çağatay, Selim & Artal-Tur, Andrés, 2013. "International migration, remittances, and the human capital formation of Egyptian children," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 28(C), pages 38-50.
    5. Zhang, Hongliang & Behrman, Jere R. & Fan, C. Simon & Wei, Xiangdong & Zhang, Junsen, 2014. "Does parental absence reduce cognitive achievements? Evidence from rural China," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 181-195.
    6. Murard, Elie, 2016. "Consumption and Leisure: The Welfare Impact of Migration on Family Left Behind," IZA Discussion Papers 10305, IZA Network @ LISER.
    7. de Brauw, Alan, . "Rural-urban migration and implications for rural production," Bio-based and Applied Economics Journal, Italian Association of Agricultural and Applied Economics (AIEAA), vol. 6(3).
    8. Pfeiffer, Friedhelm, 2014. "The Impact of Parents Migration on the Well-being of Children Left Behind: Initial Evidence from Romania," IZA Discussion Papers 8225, IZA Network @ LISER.
    9. Wubin Xie & John Sandberg & Elanah Uretsky & Yuantao Hao & Cheng Huang, 2022. "Parental Migration and Children’s Early Childhood Development: A Prospective Cohort Study of Chinese Children," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 41(1), pages 29-58, February.
    10. Narcisse Cha'ngom & Christoph Deuster & Frédéric Docquier & Joël Machado, 2025. "Selective Migration and Economic Development: A Generalized Approach," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 66(4), pages 1713-1732, October.
    11. Laurent Bossavie & Çağlar Özden, 2023. "Impacts of Temporary Migration on Development in Origin Countries," The World Bank Research Observer, World Bank, vol. 38(2), pages 249-294.
    12. Qiu, Huanguang & Hong, Junqiao & Wang, Xiangrui & Filipski, Mateusz, 2024. "Home sweet home: Impacts of living conditions on worker migration with evidence from randomized resettlement in China," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 220(C), pages 558-583.
    13. Gröger, André, 2021. "Easy come, easy go? Economic shocks, labor migration and the family left behind," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 128(C).
    14. Michael Clemens and Timothy N. Ogden, 2014. "Migration as a Strategy for Household Finance: A Research Agenda on Remittances, Payments, and Development- Working Paper 354," Working Papers 354, Center for Global Development.
    15. Bargain, Olivier B. & Boutin, Delphine, 2014. "Remittances and Child Labour in Africa: Evidence from Burkina Faso," IZA Discussion Papers 8007, IZA Network @ LISER.
    16. Hasebe, Takuya & Noritomo, Yuma & Weeraratne, Bilesha, 2026. "Restricting mothers’ international migration and human capital investment," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 200(C).
    17. Antman, Francisca M., 2018. "Women and Migration," IZA Discussion Papers 11282, IZA Network @ LISER.
    18. Philippe BOCQUIER & Narcisse CHA’NGOM & Frédéric DOQUIER & Joël MACHADO, 2024. "The within-country distribution of brain drain and brain gain effects: A case study on Senegal," JODE - Journal of Demographic Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 90(3), pages 384-411, September.
    19. Qiu, Huanguang & Hong, Junqiao & Wang, Xiangrui & Filipski, Mateusz, 2021. "Home Sweet Home: Impacts of Living Conditions on Rural-Urban Labor Migration Using Evidence from a Housing Lottery," 2021 Conference, August 17-31, 2021, Virtual 315308, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    20. Qiu, Hui & Liang, Xiao & Sun, Dan, 2024. "Parental migration, sibling migration, and the educational outcomes of children left behind in rural China," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).

    More about this item

    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:bla:asiaps:v:13:y:2026:i:1:n:e70057. 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: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/journal.asp?ref=2050-2680 .

    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.