Single Parenthood and School Readiness in White, Black, and Hispanic 6- and 7-Year-Olds

• Published in: Journal of family psychology 1999-09, Vol.13 (3), p.450-465
• Main Author: Ricciuti, Henry N
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Academic Achievement; Biological and medical sciences; Black People; Child development; Comparative studies; Couple and family; Elementary School Students; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Hispanic Americans; Human; Kindergarten Students; Latinos/Latinas; Mother Child Relations; Preschool children; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Racial and Ethnic Differences; Racial differences; School Readiness; Single Mothers; Single parent families; Single parents; Social psychology; White People
• ISSN: 0893-3200; 1939-1293
• DOI: 10.1037/0893-3200.13.3.450

The aim of this research was to examine the circumstances under which single parenthood may or may not represent an adverse influence on school readiness and achievement in 6-7-year-old children of White, Black, and Hispanic families in a large national survey (NLSY). Home visits provided measures of maternal and family characteristics and of children's vocabulary, math, reading, and behavior problems. Single parenthood was essentially unrelated to the child outcomes in all ethnic groups, and it did not interact with maternal education, ability level, or employment or with poverty status or child gender. Although single- and 2-parent families differed in income, they were very similar in maternal ability and education levels, thus suggesting that in the presence of positive maternal or family characteristics supportive of children's development, single parenthood as such need not represent a risk factor for these early child outcomes.