More than 20% of all school-aged children in Germany experience a grade retention and repetition during the educational career which is likely to affect their well-being as a central element of school success. This study aims at revealing the temporal dynamics of general and school well-being around the event of grade retention (i.e., the year when the decision to repeat a grade is taken) and the subsequent grade repetition (i.e., the repeated school year) during secondary school in Germany. Longitudinal data from the National Educational Panel Study (NEPS) is used on native students attending grades 5 through to 12 (N = 4581 from originally 273 schools). Distributed fixed-effects regressions by gender and school type have been conducted, using satisfaction with school and life as outcomes. Although retention decisions often trigger an immediate decrease in students’ well-being, there arise still benefits from this event in the short-term, middle-term and long-term, though trajectories differ by gender and school type. Overall, it is necessary to promote students´ well-being throughout their educational career, particularly in those critical periods when they face grade retention. Results highlight that tailored programs for both genders and students in different school types should be provided to foster well-being during this phase.

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Zusammenfassung Schüler*innen vollziehen während der Schulzeit meist einen Übergang von der Primar- zur Sekundarstufe und über 18% der Schulkinder in Deutschland erleben eine Klassenwiederholung. In der Lebenslaufforschung werden diese Übergänge als (kritische) Ereignisse diskutiert. Anhand empirischer Ergebnisse wird die Bedeutung von Übergängen als (kritisches) Ereignis für das Wohlbefinden der Schulkinder zusammengefasst und Implikationen abgeleitet, die zur Verbesserung des Wohlbefindens während dieser Transitionsphase beitragen können.

Our study is the first that aims at estimating the intra-individual effect of marital dissolution on mental health, conditional on parenthood status and age of the youngest biological child. We rely on the set point model that predicts a onlinear, homeostatic self-regulation process with an anticipatory effect and a subsequent recovery phase. Assuming heterogeneous effects, we expect both parenthood status and age of the youngest biological child grouped into five distinct categories to moderate the strength of the dissolution-health nexus. We use GSOEP data and restrict our sample to women and men who were at risk for first marital dissolution within the observational period 2002 to 2016. The dependent variable is the mental health component of the SF-12 survey instrument. We estimate distributed fixed-effects (dummy impact functions), covering the time span from three (or more) years before marital dissolution up to six (or more) years afterwards. Compared to the baseline, childless women exhibit a considerable impairment in mental health after dissolution, experiencing a slower recovery than childless men. Our most unambiguous result is the negative anticipation and a subsequent downward trajectory of mental health among mothers of infants and toddlers, whereas in the respective group of fathers we do not observe any change over time. In all other parent groups, mental health reacts mostly in a short-term manner to dissolution, except for fathers of pre- and primary school children whose mental health remains unchanged. Our study provides new evidence on mental health dynamics around marital dissolution and raises the awareness of mental distress, loneliness and potential social exclusion faced by childless and parents, in particular by lone mothers of young children.

Background: Losing one’s spouse is one of the most stressful life events in old age, yet research on positive consequences of overcoming critical life events describes experiences of personal growth for survivors. Objective: Because prior studies conceptualized personal growth as a stable accomplishment of an individual, our study challenges this assumption by examining trajectories of personal growth and its links to two aspects of social support. We assume that personal growth is boosted by heightened levels of loss-related social support seeking during early years of widowhood. However, toward the later stages in the bereavement process, we expect personal growth to be fostered by perceived social embeddedness. Data and Method: Data stem from a survey on relationships in later life conducted in 2012, 2014, and 2016 in Switzerland. The final analytical sample consisted of 508 individuals aged 50+ years, who were on average 73 years old and widowed for about 3 years at baseline. Longitudinal explorative factor analyses yielded a 3-factorial solution for personal growth. Random-effects group-specific growth curves were used to examine the trajectories of personal growth and its subdimensions, by different levels of loss-related social support seeking and embeddedness in a supportive network, over the first 8 years of widowhood. Our analyses included time-invariant and time-varying covariates. Results: On average, our findings point to a stable trajectory of personal growth after having become widowed in later life. Group-specific analyses, however, showed different courses in the trajectories for specific subdimensions of personal growth – particularly for spiritual change and appreciation of life. Average marginal effects also yielded group differences by loss-related support seeking in the level of personal growth over time, which highlight the importance of social support seeking, rather than social embeddedness, at all stages of the bereavement process. Conclusion: Findings underline the importance of a longitudinal and linked-lives perspective on personal growth and point to different pathways regarding its various subdimensions. Future research should further examine the validity of personal growth scales for other populations and consider the possibility to experience personal growth already during the anticipation of a traumatic event (e.g., in the case of long-term caretaking).