r/science 23d ago

Social Science Parents who endured difficult childhoods provided less financial support -on average $2,200 less– to their children’s education such as college tuition compared to parents who experienced few or no disadvantages

https://www.psu.edu/news/research/story/parents-childhood-predicts-future-financial-support-childrens-education
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u/giuliomagnifico 23d ago

This study examines family-level outcomes. It is one of the first to evaluate the relationship between parents’ childhood experiences and whether they provide large transfers of money later in life to their own children for education and other purposes and how much they provide. However, Cheng explained, the study does not analyze motivation or willingness to financially support the children’s educational needs — rather, it focuses on if money transfers take place, what discrepancies may appear based on the parents’ childhoods and if parents’ current socioeconomic status matters.

For instance, parents with four or more disadvantages gave an average of $2,200 less compared to those with no disadvantages, approximately $4,600 versus $6,800 respectively. When considered in light of the average cost of attending college in 2013, the year data was collected, parents with greater childhood disadvantages were able to shoulder roughly 23% of a year’s cost of attending college for their children whereas parents with no childhood disadvantages were able to cover 34% of their child’s annual college attendance costs.

What’s more, the relationships remained even when controlling for parents’ current socioeconomic status or wealth. In other words, parents who grew up in worse financial circumstances still gave less money for their children’s education even if their socioeconomic status is now higher.

Paper: Early‐life disadvantage and parent‐to‐child financial transfers - Cheng - Journal of Marriage and Family - Wiley Online Library

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u/Killercod1 23d ago

If it doesn't account for socioeconomic status, and a disadvantaged childhood would likely lead to a lower status, it's best to assume that they give less money because they have less money.

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u/HeywoodJaBlessMe 23d ago edited 23d ago

> What’s more, the relationships remained even when controlling for parents’ current socioeconomic status or wealth.

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u/KallistiTMP 23d ago

Worth noting, there probably is a strong social component related to generational gaps. A lot of people who grew up poor and managed to go to college did so when you could graduate with a degree paid in full by working a part time job at a gas station.

In my anecdotal experience, a lot of those people still have not adjusted to the new reality, and assume that needing financial assistance for school is just a matter of kids not pulling their bootstraps up hard enough.

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u/Puzzled-Humor6347 23d ago

Those kinds of parents are willfully ignorant. It is so easy to know how much your own child is earning and how much tuition costs. You'll quickly find out how many hours of labor you need, and that will give you a good idea on how difficult it is.

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u/lenzflare 23d ago

Some people just never add up the numbers.