Abstract
The link between parental divorce and adolescents' academic achievement may depend on parental educational levels. However, findings have been inconsistent regarding whether the negative associations between parental divorce and adolescents' academic outcomes are greater or smaller in highly educated families. The present study aimed to investigate the possible heterogeneity in the associations between divorce and adolescents' academic achievement by parental educational levels, within the context of the elaborate Norwegian welfare state. The population-based cross-sectional youth@hordaland study of adolescents aged 16-19 years conducted in Norway in 2012, provided information about parental divorce and was linked to national administrative registries (N = 9,166) to obtain high-quality, objective data on the adolescents' grade point average (GPA), and their parents' educational qualifications and income. The negative association between parental divorce and GPA was stronger among adolescents with educated or highly educated parents compared to adolescents with less educated parents. This heterogeneity was driven by maternal educational qualifications, whereby divorce was more strongly and negatively associated with GPA among adolescents with educated mothers compared to those with less educated mothers, independent of paternal educational levels and income measures. Among adolescents whose parents have low educational qualifications, parental divorce is not associated with their academic achievement. Educated divorced mothers appear less likely to transfer their educational advantages onto their children than nondivorced equally educated mothers, perhaps due to a "double-burden" regarding work pressure and child-rearing responsibilities. There is a need for future studies to detail the mechanisms underlying this finding.
Highlights
Children and adolescents with divorced or separated parents are less well-adjusted on average across a spectrum of outcomes, including physical and mental health, and do less well in school compared to those who grow up with nondivorced parents [1,2,3]
The present study aimed to investigate the possible heterogeneity in the associations between divorce and adolescents’ academic achievement by parental educational levels, within the context of the elaborate Norwegian welfare state
The negative association between parental divorce and grade point average (GPA) was stronger among adolescents with educated or highly educated parents compared to adolescents with less educated parents
Summary
Children and adolescents with divorced or separated parents are less well-adjusted on average across a spectrum of outcomes, including physical and mental health, and do less well in school compared to those who grow up with nondivorced parents [1,2,3]. Recent studies suggest that the association between divorce and youths’ academic success is partly causal [5,6] This link between divorce and poorer academic achievement is important, as successful schooling may have a long-term impact on later educational attainment, occupational and economic stability [7], and future physical and mental health [8,9,10]. The present study aimed to investigate the possible heterogeneity in the associations between divorce and adolescents’ academic achievement by parental educational levels, within the context of the elaborate Norwegian welfare state
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