Exploring Education Differences in the Parental Well‐Being Gap

Increasing evidence suggests that raising minor children is a “mixed bag” of emotions. Parents with minor children report more positive emotions, but also more negative emotions than adults without children. Little attention, however, has been paid to how this mixed bag varies by one's educatio...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Sociological inquiry 2024-02, Vol.94 (1), p.66-87
Main Authors: Augustine, Jennifer March, Negraia, Daniela V.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Children
Education
Emotions
Families & family life
Happiness
Parents & parenting
Random effects
Socioeconomic status
Time use
Citations: Items that this one cites
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Increasing evidence suggests that raising minor children is a “mixed bag” of emotions. Parents with minor children report more positive emotions, but also more negative emotions than adults without children. Little attention, however, has been paid to how this mixed bag varies by one's education level: a key socioeconomic indicator connected to family life and well‐being. Drawing on data from the American Time Use Survey Subjective Well‐being Module (2010, 2012, 2013; N = 17,481 respondents) and random effects models, we explored this question. Results revealed that parents of all education levels (vs. non‐parents) reported greater levels of positive emotions (happiness, meaning) and less sadness, but only higher educated parents reported greater levels of negative emotions (stress, fatigue). Among lower educated women, however, we observed no parental well‐being gap. These findings provide new knowledge of, and challenge several prevailing arguments about, how parenting is associated with the well‐being of higher and lower socioeconomic groups.
ISSN:0038-0245
1475-682X
DOI:10.1111/soin.12549