Child Cognitive Outcomes and Early Maternal Employment in the UK and US

1. Child Cognitive Outcomes and Early Maternal Employment in the UK and US Evidence from the first sweeps of the UK Millennium Cohort Study and the US Early Childhood Longitudinal Study Danielle A. Crosby and Denise D. Hawkes 28th November 2006

2. Outline of Presentation • Research questions • Why an international comparison? • Data • Model of early maternal employment • Results of determinants of early maternal employment • Model of child cognitive outcomes • Results of child cognitive outcomes • Challenges of comparing these datasets

3. Outline of Presentation • Research questions • Why an international comparison? • Data • Model of early maternal employment • Results of determinants of early maternal employment • Model of child cognitive outcomes • Results of child cognitive outcomes • Challenges of comparing these datasets

4. Main Research Question • Interested in the impact of early maternal employment on child cognitive development • HOWEVER: Which mothers are employed? • What are the characteristics of those who return to employment? • Are these different from those who do not return to employment? • Do these differences explain the difference in child outcomes observed? • Therefore this paper will consider firstly the determinants of maternal employment and then taking these determinants into account the impact of early maternal employment on child cognitive development

5. Outline of Presentation • Research questions • Why an international comparison? • Data • Model of early maternal employment • Results of determinants of early maternal employment • Model of child cognitive outcomes • Results of child cognitive outcomes • Challenges of comparing these datasets

6. The impact of government policy • One of the possible determinants of early maternal employment especially in the early months of life is government policies such as: • Maternity Leave/Paternity Leave • Child care provision • Flexible working agreements/Parent friendly practices • The UK and the US have very different policy settings which could be exploited

7. UK Policy Context • Statuary Maternity Leave • First 4 months statutory maternity pay and an additional 3 months unpaid job protected leave for mothers who have completed one year full service. • Statuary Paternity Leave • 2 weeks paid leave • Sure Start • government programme aimed at bring together, early education, childcare, health and family support through their children’s centres which are mainly located in disadvantaged areas in England

8. UK Policy Context Cont. • New Deal • This is an active labour market programme of intensive careers advice and application support followed by possibly education/training or subsidised job. • Benefits • Tax Credits • Working Families Tax Credit • Children’s Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit • European Laws • European Working Time Directive • European Social Charter

9. US Policy Context • Parental Leave Policies • 12 weeks of unpaid, but job-protected, leave • Leave may be used for the birth of a child; adoption of a child; the illness of a spouse, child or parent; or, the employee’s own health condition. • Employers may require that workers use any vacation or sick leave time they have as part of the 12 weeks. • Employers may deny leave to highest paid 10% of its work force (“key” employees) if leave would create problems for the firm

10. US Policy Context • Head Start • Head Start provides a full range of services (including nutritious meals and snacks, immunizations, and opportunities for parental involvement) to disadvantaged children. • Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program • Strongly employment orientated • Earned Income Tax Credit, Child Care Tax Credit • No guarantee of child care assistance to any groups

11. What do these different policy contexts suggest? • In UK those in employment before the birth of their child are likely to return to employment 4-7 months after the birth of their child • There maybe interesting differences with the UK as only England has Sure Start • In US all mothers are likely to return to employment quickly after the birth of their child • There may be interesting differences with the US as state level provisions may vary

12. Outline of Presentation • Research questions • Why an international comparison? • Data • Model of early maternal employment • Results of determinants of early maternal employment • Model of child cognitive outcomes • Results of child cognitive outcomes • Challenges of comparing these datasets

13. Millennium Cohort Study • The MCS is a nationally-representative sample of 18,818 babies within 18,552 families • The cohort members were born in the UK between September 2000 and January 2002 and were living in selected UK wards at age 9 months • The sample was drawn to over-represent those who live in areas of high child poverty, areas of high concentrations of ethnic minorities and the Celtic countries of the UK • The first sweep was undertaken when the cohort members were 9 months old

14. Early Childhood Longitudinal Study – Birth Cohort • The ECLS-B is a nationally-representative sample of 14,000 children within 10,221 families • The cohort members were born in the US during the year 2001 • The sample was drawn to over-represent those who are Asian and Pacific Islander children, American Indian and Alaska Native children, Chinese children, twins, and low and very low birth weight children. • The first sweep was undertaken when the cohort members were 9 months old

15. Comparability of Studies Similarities • Both surveys are large, longitudinal studies that follow a cohort of children born in 2000/2001. • In both surveys, the first sweep was undertaken when the cohort members were 9 months old. • Both datasets have a wealth of comparable information on the child, their family situation and their local neighborhood to draw on as possible correlates of early maternal employment. Data come from surveys, observations, and direct assessments. • Both datasets attempt to over-represent ethnic minority children (ECLS-B directly, MCS by area)

16. Comparability of Studies Differences • The MCS will follow cohort members through out their lives, designed as a a multi-purpose, multi-disciplinary dataset to “lay the foundation for future follow-ups of the cohort (and) develop links with other data sources” • The ECLS-B will follow cohort members until age 5-6 years, designed to consider “children's health, development, care, and education during the formative years from birth through kindergarten entry” • The MCS over samples those in areas of high child poverty whilst the ECLS-B also over samples twins and low birth weight children

17. Outline of Presentation • Research questions • Why an international comparison? • Data • Model of early maternal employment • Results of determinants of early maternal employment • Model of child cognitive outcomes • Results of child cognitive outcomes • Challenges of comparing these datasets

18. Determinants of early maternal employment model where emp is a dummy for whether the mother has returned to work by the time the cohort child is 9 months child is a selection of child characteristics‘ for example being the first born child mother is a selection of mother characteristics’ for example their level of education family is a selection of family characteristics’ for example if they live in owner occupied accommodation region is a set of regional dummies partner is a set of partner characteristics’ for example if the partner is employed – in the subgroup analysis of couples only

19. MCS Descriptive Statistics – Month of employment

20. Outline of Presentation • Research questions • Why an international comparison? • Data • Model of early maternal employment • Results of determinants of early maternal employment • Model of child cognitive outcomes • Results of child cognitive outcomes • Challenges of comparing these datasets

21. Child Characteristics’

22. Mother Characteristics’ • Most likely to enter employment by 9 months if: • between 20-34 years old at the time of birth • hold qualifications • black ethnic group • not Pakistani or Bangladeshi • AND if employed one year prior to birth of the cohort child

23. Family Characteristics’

24. Region • London mothers are the least likely to enter employment by nine months • Mothers in the West Midlands and Yorkshire & Humberside are the most likely to enter employment by nine months

25. Subgroup Analysis 1 • Single mothers only: • Key determinants to entering employment are: if not first birth, older than 19, qualifications, employment one year prior, co-resident grandparent, and owner occupied • Partnered mothers only: • Key determinants to entering employment are: as for single mothers plus if not multiple birth and if under 35 • In addition partner characteristics include: if father qualified to at least NVQ 3 (A-Levels)

26. Subgroup Analysis 2 • Wenters only: • Key determinants to entering employment are: under 35, qualifications, not Pakistani or Bangladeshi and not single • Returners only: • Key determinants to entering employment are: as wenters plus if not first birth, if not a multiple birth, older than 19, Black, co-resident grandparent, and owner occupied

27. Subgroup Analysis 3 • Whites only: • Key determinants to entering employment are: if first born, if not a multiple birth, over 19, qualifications, partnered, co-resident grandparent, owner occupier • Non whites only: • Key determinants to entering employment are: if over 35, qualifications, cohabiting, no other children in the household, owner occupier

28. Flexible working available 86% Part time work 36% Job share 42% Flexitime 22% Work at home 38% Special shifts 7954 observations Family Friendly Policy 6% Childcare vouchers 10% Work nursery 6% Other childcare support 77% Time off for family reasons 41% Paternity leave 34% Parental leave 57% Telephone for family 7954 observations Types of Jobs the MCS mothers enter

29. Outline of Presentation • Research questions • Why an international comparison? • Data • Model of early maternal employment • Results of determinants of early maternal employment • Model of child cognitive outcomes • Results of child cognitive outcomes • Challenges of comparing these datasets

30. Child cognitive outcomes & maternal employment where cogout is the standarised BAS or Bracken score at 3 years old emp is a two dummies for whether the mother has returned to work full time/part time by the time the cohort child is 9 months ccare if two dummies for any formal/informal child care used in the first 9 months child is a selection of child characteristics‘ for example being the first born child mother is a selection of mother characteristics’ for example their level of education family is a selection of family characteristics’ for example if they live in owner occupied accommodation region is a set of regional dummies

31. Early employment and developmental measures at 9 months for MCS • Those who have return to part time or full time employment relative to those who have not worked in the first 9 months of their child’s life report significantly: • more likely their children sleep through the night • more likely their children can sit up • more likely to be able to pass things from hand to hand • less likely to nod

32. Early employment and cognitive measures at 3 years old for MCS

33. Outline of Presentation • Research questions • Why an international comparison? • Data • Model of early maternal employment • Results of determinants of early maternal employment • Model of child cognitive outcomes • Results of child cognitive outcomes • Challenges of comparing these datasets

34. Bracken

35. BAS

36. Outline of Presentation • Research questions • Why an international comparison? • Data • Model of early maternal employment • Results of determinants of early maternal employment • Model of child cognitive outcomes • Results of child cognitive outcomes • Challenges of comparing these datasets

37. Challenges of comparing these datasets • The potential impacts of the differences in survey designs, aims and purposes • The challenge of lining up outcomes and predictors that are comparable, yet also meaningful and culturally relevant to the particular society from which the data come • In future work the challenge of incorporating the policy variables into the model.

38. www.cls.ioe.ac.uk Register online for email alerts about CLS news, events and publications.