Parental separation and children's genetic influences on education

Objective

This study focuses on the extent to which parental divorce and separation during childhood affect children's chances to realize genetic influences on educational attainment.

Background

Whether the family context matters for genetic influences on children's educational attainment remains an open question. Previous research mainly considers parents' socio-economic standing and overlooks a key dimension of social stratification: childhood family structure.

Method

This study draws on the US Health and Retirement Study (HRS) to estimate the association between education polygenic scores and educational attainment of adults who experienced a parental separation before age 16 compared to adults who lived continuously with both parents.

Results

Results show that genetic effects are smaller for adults whose parents separated compared to adults whose parents remained coupled. Moreover, additional analysis directed at the mechanisms provided no evidence that the negative impact of parental separation was attributable to adverse socioeconomic conditions during childhood.

Conclusion

The findings suggest that distinct inner-familial conditions linked to parental separation affect children's genetic influences on educational attainment.