IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/demogr/v51y2014i4p1199-1224.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

How Resource Dynamics Explain Accumulating Developmental and Health Disparities for Teen Parents’ Children

Author

Listed:
  • Stefanie Mollborn
  • Elizabeth Lawrence
  • Laurie James-Hawkins
  • Paula Fomby

Abstract

This study examines the puzzle of disparities experienced by U.S. teen parents’ young children, whose health and development increasingly lag behind those of peers while their parents are simultaneously experiencing socioeconomic improvements. Using the nationally representative Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Birth Cohort (2001–2007; N ≈ 8,600), we assess four dynamic patterns in socioeconomic resources that might account for these growing developmental and health disparities throughout early childhood and then test them in multilevel growth curve models. Persistently low socioeconomic resources constituted the strongest explanation, given that consistently low income, maternal education, and assets fully or partially account for growth in cognitive, behavioral, and health disparities experienced by teen parents’ children from infancy through kindergarten. That is, although teen parents gained socioeconomic resources over time, those resources remained relatively low, and the duration of exposure to limited resources explains observed growing disparities. Results suggest that policy interventions addressing the time dynamics of low socioeconomic resources in a household, in terms of both duration and developmental timing, are promising for reducing disparities experienced by teen parents’ children. Copyright Population Association of America 2014

Suggested Citation

  • Stefanie Mollborn & Elizabeth Lawrence & Laurie James-Hawkins & Paula Fomby, 2014. "How Resource Dynamics Explain Accumulating Developmental and Health Disparities for Teen Parents’ Children," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 51(4), pages 1199-1224, August.
  • Handle: RePEc:spr:demogr:v:51:y:2014:i:4:p:1199-1224
    DOI: 10.1007/s13524-014-0301-1
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1007/s13524-014-0301-1
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s13524-014-0301-1?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
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. repec:pri:cheawb:case_paxson_economic_status_paper is not listed on IDEAS
    2. Jason Boardman & Daniel Powers & Yolanda Padilla & Robert Hummer, 2002. "Low birth weight, social factors, and developmental outcomes among children in the United States," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 39(2), pages 353-368, May.
    3. repec:pri:cheawb:case_paxson_economic_status_paper.pdf is not listed on IDEAS
    4. Duncan, G.J. & Daly, M.C. & McDonogh, P. & Williams, D.R., 2002. "Erratum: Optimal indicators of socioeconomic status for health research (American Journal of Public Health (2002) 92 (1151-1157))," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 92(8), pages 1212-1212.
    5. Green, Richard K. & White, Michelle J., 1997. "Measuring the Benefits of Homeowning: Effects on Children," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(3), pages 441-461, May.
    6. Korenman, Sanders & Miller, Jane E. & Sjaastad, John E., 1995. "Long-term poverty and child development in the United States: Results from the NLSY," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 17(1-2), pages 127-155.
    7. Mark Hayward & Bridget Gorman, 2004. "The long arm of childhood: The influence of early-life social conditions on men’s mortality," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 41(1), pages 87-107, February.
    8. Anne Case & Darren Lubotsky & Christina Paxson, 2002. "Economic Status and Health in Childhood: The Origins of the Gradient," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 92(5), pages 1308-1334, December.
    9. Kim, Youngmi & Sherraden, Michael, 2011. "Do parental assets matter for children's educational attainment?: Evidence from mediation tests," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 33(6), pages 969-979, June.
    10. Stefanie Mollborn & Jeff Dennis, 2012. "Investigating the Life Situations and Development of Teenage Mothers’ Children: Evidence from the ECLS-B," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 31(1), pages 31-66, February.
    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. Rouse, Heather L. & Choi, Ji Young & Riser, Quentin H. & Beecher, Constance C., 2020. "Multiple risks, multiple systems, and academic achievement: A nationally representative birth-to-five investigation," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 108(C).
    2. Bradley Hardy & Timothy Smeeding & James P. Ziliak, 2018. "The Changing Safety Net for Low-Income Parents and Their Children: Structural or Cyclical Changes in Income Support Policy?," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 55(1), pages 189-221, February.
    3. Paula Fomby & Laurie James-Hawkins & Stefanie Mollborn, 2015. "Family Resources in Two Generations and School Readiness Among Children of Teen Parents," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 34(5), pages 733-759, October.
    4. Paula Fomby & Joshua A. Goode & Stefanie Mollborn, 2016. "Family Complexity, Siblings, and Children’s Aggressive Behavior at School Entry," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 53(1), pages 1-26, February.
    5. Barr, Ashley Brooke, 2015. "Family socioeconomic status, family health, and changes in students' math achievement across high school: A mediational model," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 140(C), pages 27-34.

    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. Brady, David & Guerra, Christian & Kohler, Ulrich & Link, Bruce, 2022. "The Long Arm of Prospective Childhood Income for Mature Adult Health in the United States," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 63(4), pages 543-559.
    2. repec:osf:socarx:gwkma_v1 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Brady, David & Guerra, Christian & Kohler, Ulrich & Link, Bruce, 2021. "The Long Arm of Prospective Childhood Income for Mature Adult Health in the U.S," SocArXiv gwkma, Center for Open Science.
    4. Joseph Wolfe, 2015. "The Effects of Socioeconomic Status on Child and Adolescent Physical Health: An Organization and Systematic Comparison of Measures," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 123(1), pages 39-58, August.
    5. Elliott, William, 2013. "The effects of economic instability on children's educational outcomes," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 35(3), pages 461-471.
    6. Mark E. Mcgovern, 2013. "Still Unequal at Birth: Birth Weight,Socio-economic Status and Outcomes at Age 9," The Economic and Social Review, Economic and Social Studies, vol. 44(1), pages 53-84.
    7. Wolfe, Joseph D. & Thomeer, Mieke Beth & Reczek, Rin, 2023. "Age at first birth and women's midlife health: Cohort and race differences across the 20th century," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 331(C).
    8. Simon Burgess & Carol Propper & John A. Rigg, 2004. "The Impact of Low Income on Child Health: Evidence from a Birth Cohort Study," CASE Papers 085, Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion, LSE.
    9. Beth J. Soldo & Olivia S. Mitchell & Rania Tfaily & John F. McCabe, 2006. "Cross-Cohort Differences in Health on the Verge of Retirement," NBER Working Papers 12762, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    10. Datta Gupta, Nabanita & Deding, Mette & Lausten, Mette, 2013. "The effect of low birth weight on height, weight and behavioral outcomes in the medium-run," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 11(1), pages 42-55.
    11. James Smith, 2009. "Reconstructing childhood health histories," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 46(2), pages 387-403, May.
    12. Fang, Shu & Huang, Jin & Wu, Shiyou & Jin, Minchao & Kim, Youngmi & Henrichsen, Courtney, 2020. "Family assets, parental expectation, and child educational achievement in China: A validation of mediation analyses," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 112(C).
    13. Lazuka, Volha, 2017. "The lasting health and income effects of public health formation in Sweden," Lund Papers in Economic History 153, Lund University, Department of Economic History.
    14. Lin, Ming-Jen & Liu, Elaine M., 2014. "Does in utero exposure to Illness matter? The 1918 influenza epidemic in Taiwan as a natural experiment," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 152-163.
    15. Lin, Ming-Jen & Liu, Elaine M., 2014. "Does in utero exposure to Illness matter? The 1918 influenza epidemic in Taiwan as a natural experiment," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 152-163.
    16. James Smith, 2009. "Reconstructing childhood health histories," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), pages 387-403.
    17. Gennetian, Lisa A. & Hill, Heather D. & London, Andrew S. & Lopoo, Leonard M., 2010. "Maternal employment and the health of low-income young children," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 29(3), pages 353-363, May.
    18. Schaan, Barbara, 2014. "The interaction of family background and personal education on depressive symptoms in later life," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 94-102.
    19. Joseph Wolfe & Melissa Hardy & Shawn Bauldry & Eliza Pavalko, 2018. "Multigenerational socioeconomic attainments and mortality among older men: An adjacent generations approach," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 39(26), pages 719-752.
    20. Nancy E. Reichman & Hope Corman & Kelly Noonan & Dhaval Dave, 2009. "Infant health production functions: what a difference the data make," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 18(7), pages 761-782, July.
    21. Gary W. Reinbold, 2018. "Comparing Mechanisms to Child Outcomes from Long-Term Economic Well-Being Measured with the Official Poverty Measure and the Supplemental Poverty Measure," Child Indicators Research, Springer;The International Society of Child Indicators (ISCI), vol. 11(3), pages 1007-1028, June.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    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:spr:demogr:v:51:y:2014:i:4:p:1199-1224. 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: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    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.