Instability in Parent–Child Coresidence and Adolescent Development in Urban South Africa

Abstract

There is widespread recognition of the importance of family stability for child development. South Africa presents an interesting context in which to study the consequences of family instability because of the traditionally fluid nature of household composition due to labor migration, child fostering, and non-marital fertility. More recently, the HIV pandemic has added another source of instability. Within South Africa, however, patterns of instability differ markedly across racial groups. We use the Cape Area Panel Study (CAPS) data to examine the implications of changes in parent-child coresidence for educational and sexual development of young South Africans. We show that changes in maternal and paternal coresidence have implications for the timing of sexual initiation for both black and coloured adolescents. Maternal and paternal transitions also lead to poorer educational outcomes for coloured adolescents, but parental disruptions are not significantly related to educational outcomes for blacks. These findings suggest that the implications of coresidential instability vary by race, reflecting racial differences with respect to cultural, social, and economic conditions.

Age at migration, family instability, and timing of sexual onset

“…The mechanisms linking migration-related family instability with child outcomes are similar to those posited for parental partnership instability, including decreased parental monitoring, diminished emotional support, stress, and uncertainty about the future (Dreby 2012; Goldberg 2013b; Marteleto et al 2016). When children are reunited with parents after a migration-related separation, they may also experience difficulties reestablishing close ties with parents, particularly if they feel resentful about the separation and/or became close to an interim caregiver (Marteleto et al 2016; Suarez-Orozco et al 2002).…”

“…Scholarship on the consequences of parental union instability for child wellbeing in the United States associates parents’ partnership transitions with adverse child health (Bzostek and Beck 2011), increased risk of child behavioral problems (Cavanagh and Huston 2006; Fomby and Cherlin 2007; Osborne and McLanahan 2007), early sexual debut (Albrecht and Teachman 2003; Fomby, Mollborn, and Sennott 2010; Wu and Thomson 2001) and adolescent parenthood (Hofferth and Goldscheider 2010; Wu 1996). Drawing on theories of social control and social stress, this body of literature posits several underlying mechanisms for the observed associations, including decreased supervision (if the transition involves the departure of one or both parents), diminished emotional support and sense of security, changes in family roles, and ambiguity about behavioral expectations for youth (Albrecht and Teachman 2003; Fomby et al 2010; Marteleto et al 2016; Osborne and McLanahan 2007; Wu 1996; Wu and Thomson 2001). On average, foreign-born couples experience less partnership instability than their native counterparts, which several analysts claim serves to protect their children from risky behaviors (Brandon 2002; Landale et al 2011; Perreira and Ornelas 2011); however, parents’ union stability is only one aspect of family instability that potentially influences the behavior of their offspring.…”

“…Nevertheless, largely due to data constraints, few quantitative studies examine the separation and reconstitution of families across international boundaries (Adserá and Tienda 2012). In sub-Saharan Africa, where migration is a major source of family instability, changes in co-residence with parents and guardians are associated with early transitions into both sexual activity and childbearing (Goldberg 2013a; Goldberg 2013b; Marteleto et al 2016). Evidence from Mexico, where migration is now the most common form of father absence (Nobles 2013), indicates that parent absence is associated with educational, emotional and health problems for children (Creighton et al 2009; Heymann et al 2009; Schmeer 2009).…”

“…When children are reunited with parents after a migration-related separation, they may also experience difficulties reestablishing close ties with parents, particularly if they feel resentful about the separation and/or became close to an interim caregiver (Marteleto et al 2016; Suarez-Orozco et al 2002). Child wellbeing may be particularly impacted by parental deportation, given the often abrupt nature of the separation, the attendant financial upheaval, and the indefinite long-distance separation from the deported parent (Dreby 2012).…”

Personal support and expressions of care for pregnant women in Soweto, South Africa

“…In South Africa, more than 50% of children are born out of wedlock and grow up in single-parent households, of which two-thirds are headed by women [8–11]. As a result, significant numbers of women carry, give birth to, and care for their infants without the support of the biological father [12].…”