Early Maternal Employment and Children’s Cognitive and Social Development:

1. Early Maternal Employment and Children’s Cognitive and Social Development: Evidence from the Millennium Cohort Study Denise D. Hawkes 29 September 2008

2. Outline of Presentation • Research questions • Data • Model of early maternal employment • Results of determinants of early maternal employment • Model of child outcomes • Results of child outcomes • More on selection • Conclusion

3. 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 and behavioural development

4. 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

5. 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, the second when they were 3 years old

6. MCS Descriptive Statistics – Month of employment

7. MCS Descriptive Statistics – Month of employment by education level

8. 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 familyregion is a selection of family characteristics’ for example if they live in owner occupied accommodation and a set of regional dummies

9. Child Characteristics’

10. Mother Characteristics’ • Most likely to enter employment by 9 months if: • MCS • 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

11. Family Characteristics’

12. 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

13. Child outcomes & maternal employment where childout is the standardised BAS, Bracken or SDQ 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 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 familyregion is a selection of family characteristics’ for example if they live in owner occupied accommodation and a set of regional dummies

14. BAS

15. BAS continued • Just working variables working returning to employment in the first nine months of life is significantly positive • Moderated by the inclusion of child characteristics, although they remain significantly positive • largest and most significant covariates are first born, breastfeed and birth weight • Including mother’s characteristics, become insignificant • biggest and most important effect from maternal education, more education higher scores for children • Including family and area characteristics, all remain insignificant

16. BAS continued part 2 • Heckman selection model • Subgroups: • no education, just working variables significantly positive for returning after 4 months, with all variables all insignificant • basic education, just working variables all significantly positive, with all variables all insignificant • higher education, just working variables only significantly positive between 7 and 9 months, with all variables all insignificant

17. Bracken

18. SDQ

19. Subgroup selection paths • Employment positively linked: • no educational qualifications • to not first born, not being Bangladeshi, being a home owner, having a partner and prior employment • GCSE and A-Levels • not being a multiple birth, not being Bangladeshi, being black, being a home owner, having an employed partner, not being a student and prior employment • University • not being a multiple birth, being a home owner, having a partner, not having an employed partner and prior employment

20. Conclusion • Selection into the labour market after birth • Impact of selection when explaining the relationship between child outcomes and early maternal employment • Other things to consider

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