Parental Ethnic Identity and Child Development

Stuart Campbell (), Ana Nuevo-Chiquero (), Gurleen Popli and Anita Ratcliffe
Additional contact information
Stuart Campbell: University of London

No 12104, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: We examine the relationship between parental ethnic identity and cognitive development in ethnic minority children. This aspect of parental identity may shape children's cognitive outcomes through a direct influence on parenting behaviour, or by mediating parental access to social resources. Drawing an ethnic minority sample from a detailed UK cohort study, we find a negative association between maternal majority identity and children's cognitive test scores. This result is driven by poor households, by those who lack local family support networks, and by those who mostly speak a foreign language at home. We suggest that differential access to social resources is the most persuasive explanation of this result. Differences in parenting behaviour do not seem to play an important role.

Keywords: ethnic identity; national identity; child development (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I21 J13 J15 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 32 pages
Date: 2019-01
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-eur and nep-ure
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Published - published as 'Parental identity and child test scores' in: Fiscal Studies, 2020, 41 (4), 851 - 881

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Working Paper: Parental ethnic identity and child development (2019)
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