Custody arrangements and social inequalities among children

Abstract

The recent concentration of divorce and separation among the least advantaged, and the increase in shared physical custody of children raises the question of how such family developments affect social inequalities among children. Our paper contributes to this debate by examining the moderating role of parental socioeconomic background in the relationship between children’s health and well-being and child custody arrangements. From the Spanish ‘Health Behaviour in School-aged Children’ survey, we test the competing compensatory and floor effect hypotheses, distinguishing the separate effects of father’s and mother’s education and occupation on multiple children outcomes, such as psychological complaints and life satisfaction. Our results indicate that growing up in a “non-intact” family still has greater negative consequences for disadvantaged children, and that social inequalities in child health and well-being after separation persist in contemporary Spain.