Family Structure Instability and the Educational Persistence of Young People in England

• In Event: 29.090 - Roundtable Session 9
  In Roundtable Session: 29.090-7 - Persistence, Motivation, and Community Capital Across International Contexts

Abstract

This study draws upon 10,925 young people (YP) and their parents from the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England to examine the association between family structure and family structure instability on post-16 educational persistence. Findings indicate that family structure instability has a negative impact on educational persistence. YP who had experienced family structure instability were 22 percent less likely to stay in education than YP who resided in married families during the four year prior to the end of compulsory schooling. The findings of this research provide evidence that YP who have experienced a change in family circumstances are potentially at risk for dropping out of school; this is the case irrespective of the nature of the change.

Authors

• Gillian Hampden-Thompson, University of Sussex

• Claudia Lucia Galindo, University of Maryland - Baltimore County