Heterogeneity in Divorce Penalties: Educational Attainment of Children from Immigrant and Mixed-Origin Families Experiencing Parental Separation

A large literature documents a negative effect of family dissolution on children’s educational attainment, yet little is known about how this “divorce penalty” varies by migration background. Theory suggests that children of immigrants have “less to lose” from parental separation due to their lower initial socioeconomic resources, although evidence is limited to a few country cases. Moreover, research has largely overlooked the children of mixed couples (consisting of one native and one immigrant parent); however, as we argue, they may be most affected by parental separation due to disrupted ties with their immigrant parent and minority networks. The consequences for their educational attainment may be especially pronounced if the immigrant parent has greater socioeconomic resources. Using data from 12 European countries in the Generations and Gender Survey, we examine variation in the divorce penalty in tertiary attainment by parental migration background and its moderation by parental education. Contrary to previous research, we find no differences in divorce penalties between children with two native and two immigrant parents. The largest penalty occurs among children of mixed couples, particularly those with an immigrant father. This penalty is amplified when the immigrant parent has a tertiary education, suggesting that children lose access to valuable parental resources. Analyses of residential and meeting patterns after separation reveal that for immigrant fathers, this may be due to a greater likelihood of losing contact with their children. Overall, the study sheds light on how family instability, migration background, and social origins jointly shape children’s long-term educational outcomes.