Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Family Structure and Adolescent Labor Market Participation

Examining the Motives for and Effects of At-Risk Students’ Work for Pay during High School

  • Chapter
Fragile Families and the Marriage Agenda

  • 458 Accesses

Abstract

We argue that focusing on only one type of fragile family structure—generally single-parent families, without distinguishing how these families were formed—obscures important processes and mechanisms among different types of families. We focus on a specific adolescent risk behavior, high-intensity work, and theorize that adolescents in certain types of fragile families will work more hours because of financial need, while teens in other types of fragile families will extend their work hours to avoid family conflict and stress. Using data from the 1990 and 1992 waves of the National Education Longitudinal Study, we examine the effects of living in a never-married, divorced, widowed, stepparenting, or cohabiting family on work hours. We then look at whether work hours and the motives behind their scheduling can help to explain why teachers assess students from fragile families more negatively than those from intact families. Results provide support for the more general argument that scholars hoping to understand fragile families must distinguish among different family structures and processes.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 39.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

References

  • Ambert, A. M., and Saucier, J. F., 1984, Adolescents’ academic success and aspirations by parental marital status, Sociology and Anthropology 21:62–74.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Aquilino, W. S., 1991, Family structure and home-leaving: A further specification of the relationship, Journal of Marriage and the Family 53:999–1010.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barton, P., 1989, Earning and Learning: The Academic Achievement of High School Juniors with Jobs. National Assessment of Educational Progress, Educational Testing Service: Princeton.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bills, D., Helms, L., and Ozcan, M., 1995, The impact of student employment on teachers’ attitudes and behaviors toward working students, Youth and Society 27:169–193.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bumpass, L., and Lu, H. H., 2000, Trends in cohabitation and implications for children’s family contexts in the united states, Population Studies 54:29–41.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carr, R. V., Wright, J. D., and Brody, C. J., 1996, Effects of high school work experience a decade later: evidence from the national longitudinal survey, Sociology of Education 69:66–81.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cohen, J. and Cohen, P., 1975, Applied Multiple Regression/Correlation Analysis for the Behavioral Sciences, Lawrence Erlbaum, Hillsdale, NJ.

    Google Scholar 

  • D’Amico, R., 1984, Does employment during high school impair academic progress? Sociology of Education 57:152–164.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • de Goede, M., Spruijt, E., Mass, C. and Duindam, V., 2000, Family problems and youth unemployment. Adolescence 35:587–601.

    Google Scholar 

  • Downey, D. B., 1995, Understanding academic achievement among children in stephouseholds: The role of parental resources, sex of stepparent, and sex of child, Social Forces 73:875–894.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Downey, D. B., Ainsworth-Darnell, J. W. and Dufur, M. J., 1998, Sex of parent and children’s well-being in single-parent households, Journal of Marriage and the Family 4:878–893.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Duncan, G. J., Brooks-Gunn, J., Yeung, W. J., and Smith, J. R., 1998, How much does childhood poverty affect the life chances of children? American Sociological Review 63:406–423.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fields, J., and Casper, L. M., 2001, America’s Families and Living Arrangements: Population Characteristics. Current Population Reports, P20-527. Washington, DC: U.S. Bureau of the Census.

    Google Scholar 

  • Finch, M. D., and Mortimer, J. T., 1996, Future directions for research on adolescents, work, and family, in: Adolescents, Work, and Family, J. T. Mortimer and M. D. Finch, eds, Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA, pp. 129–166.

    Google Scholar 

  • Flewelling, R. L., and Bauman, K. E., 1990, Family structure as a predictor of initial substance use and sexual intercourse in early adolescent, Journal of Marriage and the Family 52:171–181.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Greenberger, E., and Steinberg, L., 1986, When Teenagers Work: The Psychological and Social Costs of Adolescent Employment. Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Greenberger, E., Steinberg, L., Vaux, A., and McAuliffe, S., 1980, Adolescents who work: Effects of part time employment on family and peer relations, Journal of Youth and Adolescence 9:189–202.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hansen, D., and Jarvis, P., 2000, Adolescent employment and psychological outcomes: A comparison of two employment contexts, Youth and Society 31:417–436.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hoffmann, J. P., 1994, Investigating the age effects of family structure on adolescent marijuana use, Journal of Youth and Adolescence 23:215–235.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jakob-Chien, C. Y. A., and Dukes, R., 1998, Understanding adolescent work in social and behavioral contexts, Free Inquiry in Creative Sociology 26:55–62.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jenkins, J. E., and Zunguze, S. T., 1998, The relationship of family structure to adolescent drug use, peer affiliation, and perception of peer acceptance of drug use, Adolescence 33:811–822.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kouvonen, A., and Lintonen, T., 2003, Adolescent part-time work and heavy drinking in Finland, Addiction 97:311–318.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ku, L., Sonenstein, F. L., and Pleck, J. H., 1993, Neighborhood, family, and work: influences on the premarital behaviors of adolescent males, Social Forces 72:479–503.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leventhal, T., Graber, J. A., and Brooks-Gunn, J., 2001, Adolescent transitions to young adulthood: Antecedents, correlates, and consequences of adolescent employment, Journal of Research on Adolescence 11:297–323.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lewin-Epstein, Noah. 1981. Youth Employment during High School: An Analysis of High School and Beyond. National Center for Educational Statistics.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lillydahl, H., 1990, Academic achievement and part-time employment of high school students, Journal of Economic Education 21:307–316.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Markel, K. S., and Frone, M. R., 1997, Job characteristics, work-school conflict, and school outcomes among adolescents: Testing a structural model, presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association, Toronto.

    Google Scholar 

  • Marsh, H. W., 1991, Employment during high school: Character building or subversion of academic goals? Sociology of Education 65:172–189.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McLanahan, S., and Sandefur G., 1994, Growing Up with a Single Parent: What Hurts, What Helps, Harvard University Press, Cambridge.

    Google Scholar 

  • McLanahan, S. and Bumpass, L., 1988, Intergenerational consequences of family disruption, American Journal of Sociology 94:130–152.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McMorris, B. J., and Uggen, C., 2000, Alcohol and employment in the transition to adulthood, Journal of Health and Social Behavior 41:276–294.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McNeal, R. B., Jr., 1997, Are students being pulled out of high school? The effect of adolescent employment on dropping out, Sociology of Education 70:206–220.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Menaghan, E. G., Kowaleski-Jones, L., and Mott, F. L., 1997, The intergenerational costs of parental social stressors: Academic and social difficulties in early adolescence for children of young mothers, Journal of Health and Social Behavior 38:72–86.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mihalic, S. W., and Elliot, D., 1997, Short-and long-term consequences of adolescent work, Youth and Society 28:464–498.

    Google Scholar 

  • Miller, W. J., and Matthews, R. A., 2001, Youth employment, differential association, and juvenile delinquency, Sociological Focus 34:251–268.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mortimer, J. T., Finch, M. D., Ryu, S., and Shanahan, M., 1996, The effects of work intensity on adolescent mental health, achievement, and behavioral adjustment: New evidence from a prospective study, Child Development 67:1243–1261.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mortimer, J. T., and Johnson, M. K., 1997, Adolescent work and the transition to adulthood, presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association, Toronto.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pagani, L., Boulerice, B., and Tremblay, R. E., 1997, The influence of poverty on children’s classroom placement and behavior problems, in: Consequences of Growing Up Poor, G. J. Duncan and J. Brooks-Gunn, eds., Russell Sage Foundation, New York, pp. 311–339.

    Google Scholar 

  • Patton, W., and Noller, P., 1991, The family and the unemployed adolescent, Journal of Adolescence 14:343–361.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pickering, L. E., and Vazsonyi A. T., 2002, The impact of adolescent employment on family relationships, Journal of Adolescent Research 17:196–218.

    Google Scholar 

  • Roisman, G. I., 2002, Beyond main effects models of adolescent work intensity, family closeness, and school disengagement: Mediational and conditional hypotheses, Journal of Adolescent Research 17:331–345.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sandefur, G. D., McLanahan, S., and Wojtkiewicz, R. A., 1992, The effects of parental marital status during adolescence on high school graduation, Social Forces 71:103–121.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Saucier, J. F., and Ambert, A. M., 1983, Parental marital status and adolescents’ health-risk behavior, Adolescence 18:403–411.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schoenhals, M., Tienda, M., and Schneider, B., 1998, The educational and personal consequences of adolescent employment, Social Forces 77:723–761.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shanahan, M. J., Elder Jr., G. H., Burchinal, M., and Conger, R., 1996, Adolescent paid labor and relationships with parents: Early work-family linkages, Child Development 67:2183–2200.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shanahan, M. J., Finch, M., Mortimer, J. T. and Ryu, S., 1991, Adolescent work experience and depressive affect, Social Psychology Quarterly 54:299–317.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Simons, R. L., and Miller, M. G., 1987, Adolescent depression: Assessing the impact of negative cognitions and socioenvironmental problems, Social Work 32:326–330.

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith, J. R., Brooks-Gunn, J., and Klebanov, P. K., 1997, Consequences of living in poverty for young children’s cognitive and verbal ability and early school achievement, in: Consequences of Growing Up Poor, G. J. Duncan and J. Brooks-Gunn, eds., Russell Sage Foundation, New York, pp. 132–189.

    Google Scholar 

  • Steel, L., 1991, Early work experience among white and non-white youths: Implications for subsequent enrollment and employment, Youth and Society 22:419–447.

    Google Scholar 

  • Steelman, L. C., and Powell, B., 1991, Sponsoring the next generation: Parental willingness to pay for higher education, American Journal of Sociology 96:1505–1529.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Steinberg, L. D., 1993, Negative impact of part-time work on adolescent adjustment: Evidence from a longitudinal study, Developmental Psychology 29:171–180.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Steinberg, L. D., and Dornbsch, S. M., 1993, Negative correlates of part-time employment during adolescence: replication and elaboration, Developmental Psychology 29:304–313.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Steinberg, L. D., Greenberger, E., Vaux, A., and Ruggiero, M., 1981, Early work experience: Effects on adolescent occupational socialization, Youth and Society 12:403–422.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stone, J. R. III, and Mortimer, J. T., 1998, The effect of adolescent employment on vocational development: Public and educational policy implications, Journal of Vocational Behavior 53:184–214.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Warren, J. R., 2002, Reconsidering the relationship between student employment and academic achievement, Youth and Society 33:366–393.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yamoor, C. M., and Mortimer, J. T., 1990, Age and gender differences in the effects of employment on adolescent achievement and well-being, Youth and Society 22:225–240.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT

    Mikaela J. Dufur & Kelly P. Troutman

Authors
  1. Mikaela J. Dufur
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Kelly P. Troutman
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Family and Consumer Studies, University of Utah, 225 South 1400 East, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112-0080, USA

    Lori Kowaleski-Jones  & Nicholas H. Wolfinger  & 

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2006 Springer Science+Business Media, Inc.

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Dufur, M.J., Troutman, K.P. (2006). Family Structure and Adolescent Labor Market Participation. In: Kowaleski-Jones, L., Wolfinger, N.H. (eds) Fragile Families and the Marriage Agenda. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/0-387-26025-0_7

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation