Parental Divorce and Children’s Schooling in Rural Malawi

Chae, Sophia

doi:10.1007/s13524-016-0521-7

Cited by 17 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 83 publications

(113 reference statements)

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“…In a skipped-generation household, in which parents are deceased or absent, their role can be even more important. Parental death and especially maternal death is known to have a negative impact on children’s well-being and schooling outcomes (e.g., Case and Ardington 2006 ; Evans and Miguel 2007 ; Nyamukapa and Gregson 2005 ) and also absence of parents due to divorce or separation may profoundly affect children’s lives (Amato 2000 ; Chae 2016 ; Pong et al 2003 ). Our results make clear that presence of the grandmother is indeed particularly important when the mother is deceased or absent from the household.…”

Section: Conclusion and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Grandmothers and Children’s Schooling in Sub-Saharan Africa

Schrijner

Smits

2017

Hum Nat

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Under poor circumstances, co-residence of a grandmother is generally considered to be beneficial for (grand)children. Empirical evidence does not unequivocally support this expectation and suggests that the grandmother’s importance depends on the family’s circumstances. We study the relationship between grandmother’s co-residence and children’s schooling in sub-Saharan Africa under a broad range of circumstances. Results make clear that the effect of a co-residing grandmother varies but is almost always positive. Grandmothers over age 60 are most effective in helping their (grand)children. They are particularly important for girls, and when the mother is deceased or not living in the household. Grandmothers are less effective in situations with few opportunities, as in very poor regions or in communities with few schooling opportunities. Our findings indicate that providing support to grandmothers should not be overlooked when designing policies aimed at strengthening the position of women and children in the sub-Saharan African context.

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Section: Conclusion and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Grandmothers and Children’s Schooling in Sub-Saharan Africa

Schrijner

Smits

2017

Hum Nat

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“…For instance, observed negative outcomes for the children in a stepfather family may precede the remarriage of their mother to the stepfather, and therefore they cannot be attributed to the stepfamily. Indeed, given that divorce negatively affects a child's health and well-being (Chae 2016;Thiombiano, LeGrand, and Kobiané 2013), it is difficult to ascribe these effects to stepfamilies if the situation endures over time. While problems of selection bias may fairly be addressed using longitudinal data, the crosssectional data used in this study require some methodological caution to avoid selection bias (Adjiwanou and Legrand 2013).…”

Section: Problems Of Selectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Recently, the high prevalence of divorce in SSA has attracted new research that aims to understand how divorce affects various aspects of child and adolescent life (Clark and Hamplová 2013;Thiombiano, LeGrand, and Kobiané 2013;Ntoimo and Odimegwu 2014;Chae 2016;Izugbara 2016). In Burkina Faso, Thiombiano, LeGrand, and Kobiané (2013) found a higher risk of mortality under age 5 and lower school attendance among children of divorced parents relative to children who live with both biological parents.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In Burkina Faso, Thiombiano, LeGrand, and Kobiané (2013) found a higher risk of mortality under age 5 and lower school attendance among children of divorced parents relative to children who live with both biological parents. Using longitudinal data and controlling for selection bias, Chae (2016) showed that parental divorce has a negative effect on children's schooling in Malawi. Another aspect of this literature is related to single motherhood.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Stepfather families and children's schooling in sub-Saharan Africa: A cross-national study

Adjiwanou¹,

Boco²,

Yaya³

2021

DemRes

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BACKGROUNDResearch on stepfamilies and their effects on childhood investments is limited in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), a region characterized by a high level of remarriage and fertility. OBJECTIVEThe objectives of this study were to assess the prevalence of children in stepfather family arrangements and to explore the influence of this family arrangement on children's schooling. METHODSWe rely on recent Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) conducted in 33 SSA countries between 2006 and 2015. The study sample consists of 277,726 children aged 6 to 14. Cluster-level fixed effect models were used to predict children's school attendance status in stepfather family arrangements, in contrast with families with both biological parents or single-mother family arrangements. RESULTSAt the regional level, the proportion of children and adolescents under 15 years of age living with stepfathers was 2.5%, ranging from 1.1% in Burkina Faso to 6.3% in Gabon. In the regression analyses, children living in stepfather family arrangements were associated with lower school attendance when compared with children living with their biological parents and when compared to children in single-motherhood family arrangements. These effects are more pronounced in urban areas than in rural areas. Finally, we found that girls were not over-discriminated against in stepfather family arrangements compared to boys.Adjiwanou, Boco & Yaya: Stepfather families and children's schooling in sub-Saharan Africa CONCLUSIONStepfather family arrangements negatively affect children's schooling in SSA. Nonetheless, further studies for better understanding of these family arrangements are needed, as well as studies of the interactions that children have with their fathers or fathers' families. CONTRIBUTIONThis study makes an original contribution to the literature on family complexity -shedding light on the phenomenon of step-parenting -and its consequences on children's schooling in SSA.

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“…I predicted that maternal nonresidence because of marital status changes would be associated with poorer child outcomes, particularly child survival. In the few examinations of maternal divorce in the region, children of divorced mothers experienced the worst mortality outcomes (Clark & Hamplová, ) and had lower educational outcomes when compared with children of married mothers (Chae, ; Thiombiano et al, ). However, these studies are limited to samples drawn from mothers only and do not provide specific evidence on maternal nonresidence as a result of marital status changes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Beyond Orphanhood: Parental Nonresidence and Child Well‐being in Tanzania

Gaydosh

2017

J of Marriage and Family

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This article used data from the Rufiji Health and Demographic Surveillance System in Tanzania to examine the influence of parental non-residence on child survival and school entry. Using survival analysis methods, the article tested variations by parent and by cause, examining parental death, non-residence due to parental relationship status, and migration. In general, maternal non-residence was more consequential for child survival, while paternal non-residence influences school entry. This is consistent with gendered parenting patterns in the setting. There was important variation by cause and by outcome, particularly for paternal non-residence. Paternal non-residence due to non-marital birth was associated with increased risk of child death, while paternal migration was associated with improved survival. Paternal death and migration were associated with lower odds of school entry. This article moves beyond orphanhood to consider multiple causes of parental non-residence simultaneously, demonstrating that parental non-residence is not uniformly deleterious for children.

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Parental Divorce and Children’s Schooling in Rural Malawi

Cited by 17 publications

References 83 publications

Grandmothers and Children’s Schooling in Sub-Saharan Africa

Grandmothers and Children’s Schooling in Sub-Saharan Africa

Stepfather families and children's schooling in sub-Saharan Africa: A cross-national study

Beyond Orphanhood: Parental Nonresidence and Child Well‐being in Tanzania

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