The Impact of Maternal Beliefs on Child Skills Development from Early Ages to Adolescence

Greta Morando and Sonkurt Sen ()

CRC TR 224 Discussion Paper Series from University of Bonn and University of Mannheim, Germany

Abstract: Parental beliefs about the returns to investment play a key role in shaping how parents invest in their children, yet their long-term impact on child development is understudied. Using a valueadded model in a nationally representative cohort study, we find that maternal beliefs about returns to investment, as measured by locus of control, positively influence children’s socioemotional skills from early childhood to adolescence. These beliefs have a negligible impact on cognitive skills and academic outcomes. Parental investment emerges as a key channel in this relationship, suggesting that maternal beliefs primarily shape children’s non-cognitive development through differences in how parents engage with their children. We find that intergenerational inequality in child development is partly driven by the socio-economic gradient in maternal beliefs about the returns to investment.

Keywords: Parental Beliefs; Child Development; Locus of Control; Inequality (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D10 D91 I24 J13 J24 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 62
Date: 2024-01, Revised 2025-05
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:bon:boncrc:crctr224_2024_498v2

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