Mexican parent's undocumented status and the educational attainment of the children left behind

Research shows that having undocumented parents lowers the educational attainment of children that grew up in the United States, but we know less about how it affects the education of children left behind in their origin countries. We use fixed effects models and data from the Mexican Migration Project to examine this relationship. We find that having both parents documented increases the educational attainment of children left behind by over two years in comparison to similar children with mixed-status, undocumented, and nonimmigrant parents. The effect is especially robust for boys that migrate as teenagers. These findings reveal that US immigration laws that define most Mexican immigrants as undocumented have had a devastating effect on the education of Mexican children left behind.     

Population migration and children’s school enrollments in China, 1990–2005

This paper examines the impact of migration on children’s school enrollment by analyzing the micro-data from Chinese population censuses in 1990 and 2000 and mini-census in 2005. We match school-age children (7–14 years old) with their parents, and examine how migration status and parents’ absence affect children’s school enrollment in urban China. We also compare rural–urban migrant children with their peers in both origin counties and destination districts. Results show that migrant children are less likely to be enrolled in school than urban local children and that children of rural registration status are particularly disadvantaged in school enrollment over the whole examined period in urban China. Rural–urban migrant children fare significantly worse than non-migrant children in both origins and destinations and noticeably they are even less likely than left-behind children to be enrolled in school. The likelihood of being enrolled in school increases for rural–urban migrant children as they spend more time in destinations.     

Family structure and the economic wellbeing of children in youth and adulthood

An extensive literature on the relationship between family structure and children’s outcomes consistently shows that living with a single parent is associated with negative outcomes. Few US studies, however, examine how a child’s family structure affects outcomes for the child once he/she reaches adulthood. We directly examine, using the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, whether family structure during childhood is related to the child’s economic wellbeing both during childhood as well as during adulthood. We find that living with a single parent is associated with the level of family resources available during childhood. This finding persists even when we remove time invariant factors within families. We also show that family structure is related to the child’s education, marital status, and adult family income. Once we control for the child’s demography and economic wellbeing in childhood, however, the associations into adulthood become trivial in size and statistically insignificant, suggesting that the relationship between family structure and children’s long-term, economic outcomes is due in large part to the relationship between family structure and economic wellbeing in childhood.     

Does social insurance enrollment improve citizen assessment of local government performance? Evidence from China

Although many studies claim that social policies are “carrots” that authoritarian leaders use to garner public support, the assumption that social benefits can boost public support of government has been rarely tested empirically, especially at the local levels. This article investigates the effects of social insurance enrollment on citizens' assessment of local government performance using data from the 2010 China Family Panel Study. We use propensity score matching to reduce selection bias and ordered probit regressions with fixed effects to examine these possible effects. We find that social insurance enrollment had a significant positive effect on rural citizens' assessment of government performance, but this effect did not exist for their urban and migrant peers. This discrepancy could be largely due to the groups' different expectations for government redistribution and their distinct experiences of China's social welfare reform. We conclude that the Chinese authoritarian government has achieved partial success in its attempt to use social policies to maintain popular support.     

Family structure and the intergenerational transmission of educational advantage

I examine whether the effect of parents’ education on children’s educational achievement and attainment varies by family structure and, if so, whether this can be explained by differential parenting practices. Using data from the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988, I find that as parents’ education increases, children in single mother families experience a lower boost in their achievement test scores, likelihood of attending any post-secondary schooling, likelihood of completing a 4-year college degree, and years of completed schooling relative to children living with both biological parents. Differences in parents’ educational expectations, intergenerational closure, and children’s involvement in structured leisure activities partially explain these status transmission differences by family structure. The findings imply that, among children with highly educated parents, children of single mothers are less likely to be highly educated themselves relative to children who grow up with both biological parents.     

Paternal incarceration and child-reported behavioral functioning at age 9

Within the last few decades our understanding of the importance of non-cognitive skills for socioeconomic success has grown along with our knowledge of the deleterious impacts of paternal incarceration for child wellbeing. Given the importance of early skills and that elementary-aged children constitute the majority of children with incarcerated parents, understanding the connection between paternal incarceration and the socio-emotional component of children’s non-cognitive development is pressing. Using matching models, data from the newest wave of the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, and exploring a larger range of behavioral skills than previous literature, this paper provides estimates of the impact of paternal incarceration on children’s behavioral functioning at age 9 using children’s own self-reports. Comparisons to oft-used parent reports are made and heterogeneity by gender is explored. Findings suggest the incarceration of a father increases the antisocial behaviors children self-report, but has null effects on prosocial skill development.     

Single-parent households and mortality among children and youth

Although many studies have examined associations between family structure and child outcomes, few have considered how the increase in single-parent households since the 1960s may have affected child mortality rates. We examined state-level changes in the percentage of children living with single parents between 1968 and 2010 and state-level trends in mortality among children and youth (age 19 or younger) in the United States. Regression models with state and year fixed effects revealed that increases in single parenthood were associated with small increments in accidental deaths and homicides.     

Housing crowding effects on children’s wellbeing

The degree to which children grow up in crowded housing is a neglected but potentially important aspect of social inequality. Poor living conditions can serve as a mechanism of social stratification, affecting children’s wellbeing and resulting in the intergenerational transmission of social inequality. This paper reports an investigation of housing crowding on children’s academic achievement, behavior, and health in the US and Los Angeles, a city with atypically high levels of crowding. We use data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics’ Child Development Supplement and the Los Angeles Family and Neighborhood Survey to explore the effect of living in a crowded home on an array of child wellbeing indicators. We find that several dimensions of children’s wellbeing suffer when exposed to crowded living conditions, particularly in Los Angeles, even after controlling for socioeconomic status. The negative effects on children raised in crowded homes can persist throughout life, affecting their future socioeconomic status and adult wellbeing.     

Gender Inequality and Economic Growth in Rural China

This article joins the debate over the effect of market-driven economic development on women's work opportunities and household gender inequalities. It assesses women's opportunities for off-farm employment, the relative contributions of female off-farm workers to household income, and the distribution of power in families whose male members have left for off-farm jobs, leaving women behind in agricultural work. We find that women are not uniformly excluded from opportunities for off-farm employment and that economic development does not uniformly increase gender inequalities within Chinese households. Although men are more likely than women to obtain off-farm employment in China, women's opportunities for off-farm work improve significantly when the coexistence of local and regional marketization creates a shortage of male workers and compels employers to hire women. The relative size of contributions to household income for male and female nonfarm workers also narrows incrementally with increased marketization. In addition, women who are left in agricultural work are more likely to become heads of household, a position which brings greater household decision-making power to female family members.     

苏北农村老人生存状态的调查与分析——以淮安市Z村为例

对苏北农村老人的生存状态的调查发现,该村老人经济拮据,从政府和子女中得到的补助非常有限;健康状况不容乐观,患慢性病的较多,不少老人存在“有病不治”的现象;老年人与子女互动少,子女的情感支持缺位。在目前我国大部分农村地区还不具备建立社会养老制度的情况下,家庭养老仍然是农村主要的养老方式。因此,倡导孝道复兴,挖掘和发挥传统孝道文化的价值,强化子女对父母的养老责任,将有助于改善农村老人生存状态,提高农村老年人的生活质量。     

美国离婚后的虚拟探望制度及其启示

虚拟探望作为探望权行使的一种方式,在美国为异地而居的离婚父母和子女广泛使用,作为离婚后未与子女共同生活的非监护父、母与子女间现实探望的补充,在弥补现实探望被减少的缺憾、持续维持与增进子女与异地非监护父母之间的亲子关系以及刺激非监护父、母支付抚养费等方面都具有积极的作用与意义。在离婚率日益攀升和人口流动性日渐增强的我国社会,基于虚拟探望在促进离婚父、母与子女间的亲子情感利益上所具有的价值及功能,基于其实现的简易性和便利性,宜透过司法解释以例示方式规定,将其作为探望权行使的方式之一。     

Single-parent households and children’s educational achievement: A state-level analysis

Although many studies have examined associations between family structure and children’s educational achievement at the individual level, few studies have considered how the increase in single-parent households may have affected children’s educational achievement at the population level. We examined changes in the percentage of children living with single parents between 1990 and 2011 and state mathematics and reading scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Regression models with state and year fixed effects revealed that changes in the percentage of children living with single parents were not associated with test scores. Increases in maternal education, however, were associated with improvements in children’s test scores during this period. These results do not support the notion that increases in single parenthood have had serious consequences for U.S. children’s school achievement.     

Family structure and the reproduction of inequality: Parents’ contribution to children’s college costs

This article examines the role of family structure in the financial support parents provide for their children’s college education. Data are from the Health and Retirement Study. We focus on aspects of family structure that affect parental support and estimate shared family variance in investments as well as within-family variation using a multilevel model. Family membership accounts for about 60% of the variance in payment of college costs. Small family size, living with both biological parents (compared to one biological parent and a stepparent), higher parental education, and having older parents are associated with greater parental expenditures.     

提升地方院校学生考研辅导成效的难点与对策——以95后艺术生考研辅导为例

高校学生考研工作凝聚着各方面的期待。如何有效提升学生考研辅导工作成效,成为大多数负责考研辅导工作的同行需要面临的问题。以地方院校为视角,从实践辅导经验出发,分别从报考机制、管理机制、辅导机制阐述如何提升学生考研辅导工作成效。     

儿子对老年父母的照顾:香港夹心代的境况与态度的启示

通过研究香港中年夹心代对老年父母的照顾模式发现,儿子对父母仍存在积极的照顾,特别在经济及感情的照顾上,儿子的参予不见得比女儿少。并从老年父母的角度来了解中年夹心代的责任。研究发现不论由中年夹心代照顾者看其对老年父母的责任,抑或由老年父母的角度看儿子的责任,也都认为儿子应照顾老年父母,及在现实的情况下,儿子实际上亦有施予照顾,且其参予不见得比女儿少。不过,两代间对中年夹心代对家庭成员的责任则出现不一致的看法。中年夹心代倾向优先照顾其本身的儿女(即第三代),其次才是照顾其老年父母,再其次是照顾其配偶。     

Reconsidering residential mobility: Differential effects on child wellbeing by race and ethnicity

Residential mobility is a common experience among Americans, especially children. Most previous research finds residential mobility has negative effects on children's educational attainment, delinquency, substance abuse, and physical and mental health. Previous research, however, does not fully explore whether the effect of mobility differs by child race/ethnicity, in part because many of the samples used for these studies were majority white or exclusively non-white or disadvantaged. In addition, previous research rarely fully accounts for factors that predict selection into mobility and that may also be related to the outcome of interest. This study simultaneously addresses both of these limitations by estimating the effect of moving homes on children's emotional and behavioral wellbeing using first difference models and a diverse longitudinal sample from the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods. I find that, after controlling for a wide range of individual, caregiver, household and neighborhood characteristics, the effects of moving among African American and Latino children are significantly worse than among white children.     

Losing ground,losing sleep: Local economic conditions,economic vulnerability,and sleep

Medical research shows that healthy sleep has benefits for human wellbeing. We contribute to the emerging social-epidemiological literature on the social determinants of sleep by considering how living in an area with poor economic circumstances can result in sleep loss through financial worry, uncertainty and stress. We use multilevel regression models and nationally-representative data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia Survey (n = 9181) and find that individuals who live in areas with high unemployment rates or experience individual-level economic vulnerability sleep less than comparable individuals in areas with low unemployment rates, or who do not experience financial hardships. The negative association between local economic conditions and sleep duration is substantially stronger amongst economically vulnerable individuals. This highlights the importance of considering multiple levels in the analysis of health inequalities, as status and location can intersect to produce and reproduce disadvantage systems.     

Unmet Expectations and Symptoms of Depression among the Three Gorges Project Resettlers

To successfully resettle 1.27 million Chinese for the construction of the Three Gorges Project (TGP), the Chinese government employed a new re-resettlement policy which emphasizes infrastructural development of the resettlement sites to assure resettlers a sustainable livelihood following resettlement. Unfortunately, many benefits the policy promised have not materialized. As a result, many resettlers have suffered an increase in depressive symptoms associated with unmet expectations. Using panel data collected before and after relocation from a sample of Three Gorges resettlers, we found that a high proportion of resettlers reported unmet expectations which were significantly associated with an increase in depressive symptoms. Our findings indicate that undeliverable promises can backfire and further aggravate the harm inflicted on the displaced caused by the project-induced displacement. From the perspective of resettlers, a sound coping strategy to minimize the harm caused by the displacement on their mental wellbeing is to expect for the worst.     

How do they do it? The immigrant paradox in the transition to adulthood

How do children of immigrants consistently outperform children of native-born U.S. parents, in spite of lower familial resources? Using the Transition to Adulthood Study of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, children of immigrant and native-born parents completing high school in 2005–13 are followed as they move into the young adult years. Children of immigrants are more likely to enroll in college, be employed or in school, and less likely to have a criminal record as young adults or to have a child than children of nonimmigrants. This is not a result of immigrant parentage but due primarily to greater parental educational expectations; immigrants enjoy a differential return to parental expectations for boys' college enrollment as well. Reading skills and activity patterns in the secondary school years also contribute to better outcomes. Children of immigrants are better able to translate their reading comprehension skills to college or employment later on.     

生态社会主义对中国生态文明建设的启示

中国共产党十八大报告指出,建设生态文明,是关系人民福祉、关乎民族未来的长远大计。北京"雾霾"天气的持续出现更是引起全国人民对环境问题的关注。因此,中国在建设生态文明过程中必须借鉴生态社会主义的思想。生态社会主义在20世纪70年代从西方世界的绿色运动中开始兴起,由此成为全人类关注的焦点。法兰克福学派的代表人物马尔库塞从马克思的经典著作中寻找到了生态社会主义的理论渊源;本·阿格尔所著的《西方马克思主义概论》系统的阐述了生态社会主义的基本观点,把资本主义所产生的生态危机归结为消费异化所带来的后果。当今中国随着市场经济的发展,面临着资本主义国家当年所面临的生态问题。由此党的十八大提出把生态文明建设放在突出地位,形成了"五位一体"的建设总布局。我们应该借鉴人类历史上优秀的文明成果,合理吸收生态社会主义的理论创新去解决中国面临的生态环境问题。