Study: Wedded parents not as key as stability for kids
By Erin Dostal
The Columbus Dispatch
September 19, 2009
Stability, not marital status, is what matters in raising a successful child, according to a study at Ohio State University. Claire Kamp Dush, an assistant professor of human development and family science at OSU, found that children who grow up with a single mother were as likely to succeed socially and academically as those who grow up in married-couple homes, as long as the child had "family stability."
Family stability means having a mother who does not move in with or marry someone after the child is born.
"Kids like to know what to expect," Kamp Dush said. "A universal message is that we all need to be careful before we make those family structure transitions."
The study has implications for nontraditional families, such as gay couples with children, or kids living with relatives who are not their parents, she said.
Kamp Dush based her study on data from 4,910 mothers and 11,428 children who participated in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth. Families were matched by economic status and race so that Kamp Dush could compare how children did with single mothers and married couples while controlling for other factors.
She found that there were no marked differences, except among black families. Black children living with a single mother had lower math and reading scores than those with married parents.
She also analyzed measures of behavioral problems and levels of cognitive stimulation and emotional support.
An official at a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit group that studies child development found the results surprising.
"Most (researchers) find differences between children in married couples and single-parent families," said Kristin Moore, a senior researcher for Child Trends. Money and the quality of education available to kids affect a child's chance of success, Moore said. But both of those factors are related to a stable home life.
"That whole package is really important for kids," she said. "Poverty is a real issue for single-parent families."
According to the 2007 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, 50 percent of children born to single mothers lived below the poverty level.
The number of single mothers who do not remarry or cohabit during the course of their child's life is very small. Because this study focuses on a very small portion of single families, it might not indicate a strong pattern, Moore said.
Dr. Paramjit Joshi, a child and adolescent psychologist at Children's National Medical Center in Washington, D.C., said that she's not surprised by the findings. Joshi said other factors are more important than the mother's marital status.
"It boils down to if the needs of the child are met," she said. "It's more challenging for a single parent to do it herself."
Kamp Dush published her findings in the book Marriage and Family: Perspectives and Complexities.
Children of a single mom who didn't marry or move in with a new man were as successful as those from married-couple homes, the researcher found.
By Erin Dostal
The Columbus Dispatch
September 19, 2009
Stability, not marital status, is what matters in raising a successful child, according to a study at Ohio State University. Claire Kamp Dush, an assistant professor of human development and family science at OSU, found that children who grow up with a single mother were as likely to succeed socially and academically as those who grow up in married-couple homes, as long as the child had "family stability."
Family stability means having a mother who does not move in with or marry someone after the child is born.
"Kids like to know what to expect," Kamp Dush said. "A universal message is that we all need to be careful before we make those family structure transitions."
The study has implications for nontraditional families, such as gay couples with children, or kids living with relatives who are not their parents, she said.
Kamp Dush based her study on data from 4,910 mothers and 11,428 children who participated in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth. Families were matched by economic status and race so that Kamp Dush could compare how children did with single mothers and married couples while controlling for other factors.
She found that there were no marked differences, except among black families. Black children living with a single mother had lower math and reading scores than those with married parents.
She also analyzed measures of behavioral problems and levels of cognitive stimulation and emotional support.
An official at a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit group that studies child development found the results surprising.
"Most (researchers) find differences between children in married couples and single-parent families," said Kristin Moore, a senior researcher for Child Trends. Money and the quality of education available to kids affect a child's chance of success, Moore said. But both of those factors are related to a stable home life.
"That whole package is really important for kids," she said. "Poverty is a real issue for single-parent families."
According to the 2007 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, 50 percent of children born to single mothers lived below the poverty level.
The number of single mothers who do not remarry or cohabit during the course of their child's life is very small. Because this study focuses on a very small portion of single families, it might not indicate a strong pattern, Moore said.
Dr. Paramjit Joshi, a child and adolescent psychologist at Children's National Medical Center in Washington, D.C., said that she's not surprised by the findings. Joshi said other factors are more important than the mother's marital status.
"It boils down to if the needs of the child are met," she said. "It's more challenging for a single parent to do it herself."
Kamp Dush published her findings in the book Marriage and Family: Perspectives and Complexities.
Children of a single mom who didn't marry or move in with a new man were as successful as those from married-couple homes, the researcher found.
