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Article Open Access July 12, 2024

Racial Gap in Household Income Explains Black-White Disparities in the Intergenerational Transmission of Educational Attainment

Shervin Assari 1, 2, 3, 4,* and Hossein Zare 5, 6
1
Department of Internal Medicine, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, CA, United States
2
Department of Family Medicine, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, CA, United States
3
Department of Urban Public Health, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, CA, United States
4
Marginalization-Related Diminished Returns (MDRs) Center, Los Angeles, CA, United States
5
Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United States
6
School of Business, University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC), College Park, MD, United States
Publihed in: Current Research in Public Health (Volume 4, Issue 3, 2024)
Page(s): 137-148
DOI: 10.31586/ojer.2024.962
Received
May 23, 2023
Revised
June 30, 2024
Accepted
July 11, 2024
Published
July 12, 2024
Keywords
Ethnic Groups; Racism; Young Adult; Incarceration; Social Mobility
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright: Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Scientific Publications
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APA Style
Assari, S. , & Zare, H. (2024). Racial Gap in Household Income Explains Black-White Disparities in the Intergenerational Transmission of Educational Attainment. Current Research in Public Health, 4(3), 137-148. https://doi.org/10.31586/ojer.2024.962
ACS Style
Assari, S. ; Zare, H. Racial Gap in Household Income Explains Black-White Disparities in the Intergenerational Transmission of Educational Attainment. Current Research in Public Health 2024 4(3), 137-148. https://doi.org/10.31586/ojer.2024.962
Chicago/Turabian Style
Assari, Shervin, and Hossein Zare. 2024. "Racial Gap in Household Income Explains Black-White Disparities in the Intergenerational Transmission of Educational Attainment". Current Research in Public Health 4, no. 3: 137-148. https://doi.org/10.31586/ojer.2024.962
AMA Style
Assari S, Zare H. Racial Gap in Household Income Explains Black-White Disparities in the Intergenerational Transmission of Educational Attainment. Current Research in Public Health. 2024; 4(3):137-148. https://doi.org/10.31586/ojer.2024.962 
@Article{crph962,
AUTHOR = {Assari, Shervin and Zare, Hossein},
TITLE = {Racial Gap in Household Income Explains Black-White Disparities in the Intergenerational Transmission of Educational Attainment},
JOURNAL = {Current Research in Public Health},
VOLUME = {4},
YEAR = {2024},
NUMBER = {3},
PAGES = {137-148},
URL = {https://www.scipublications.com/journal/index.php/OJER/article/view/962},
ISSN = {2831-5162},
DOI = {10.31586/ojer.2024.962},
ABSTRACT = {Background: Racial disparities in educational outcomes persist in the United States, with Black individuals experiencing lower levels of educational attainment and a higher rate of school disciplinary actions compared to their White counterparts. Parental education is a known predictor of offspring educational attainment, but its effects may vary by race. Understanding the role of household income in mediating these effects is crucial for developing targeted policy interventions to reduce educational inequalities. Objectives: This study aimed to examine the role of household income in mediating the differential effects of maternal education on two youth educational outcomes (educational attainment by age 22 and school disciplinary action) in Black and White families. Methods: Data were drawn from the 22 years of follow-up of the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study (FFCWS), a longitudinal study following a cohort of children born in large U.S. cities between 1998 and 2000. Participants included 1,647 Black and 689 White young adults who were followed from birth to age 22. Maternal education, household income, family structure, and paternal incarceration were assessed at baseline (birth), and two youth educational outcomes, namely educational attainment and any school disciplinary action, were assessed at age 22 (emerging adulthood). Using structural equation modeling (SEM), mediation analysis was conducted to examine whether household income partially mediates the effects of maternal education on youth educational outcomes, with race (Black vs. White) as the moderator. Results: The results indicated that maternal education was positively associated with youth educational attainment and negatively associated with school disciplinary actions in the pooled sample that included both Black and White families. However, the effect of parental education on educational attainment at age 22 was weaker for Black than White families. Household income partially mediated racial differences in the effect of maternal education on youth educational attainment. The results suggest that lower household income in Black families is why we observe a weaker effect of parental education on youth educational attainment for Black youth compared to White youth. Conclusions: Findings suggest that the lower household income of families is one of the reasons high maternal education levels are associated with lower youth educational attainment in Black than White families. Addressing income disparities through tax policies may help reduce racial disparities in education and promote educational equity for Black youth.},
}
%0 Journal Article
%A Assari, Shervin
%A Zare, Hossein
%D 2024
%J Current Research in Public Health

%@ 2831-5162
%V 4
%N 3
%P 137-148

%T Racial Gap in Household Income Explains Black-White Disparities in the Intergenerational Transmission of Educational Attainment
%M doi:10.31586/ojer.2024.962
%U https://www.scipublications.com/journal/index.php/OJER/article/view/962

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AU  - Assari, Shervin
AU  - Zare, Hossein
TI  - Racial Gap in Household Income Explains Black-White Disparities in the Intergenerational Transmission of Educational Attainment
T2  - Current Research in Public Health
PY  - 2024
VL  - 4
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SN  - 2831-5162
SP  - 137
EP  - 148
UR  - https://www.scipublications.com/journal/index.php/OJER/article/view/962
AB  - Background: Racial disparities in educational outcomes persist in the United States, with Black individuals experiencing lower levels of educational attainment and a higher rate of school disciplinary actions compared to their White counterparts. Parental education is a known predictor of offspring educational attainment, but its effects may vary by race. Understanding the role of household income in mediating these effects is crucial for developing targeted policy interventions to reduce educational inequalities. Objectives: This study aimed to examine the role of household income in mediating the differential effects of maternal education on two youth educational outcomes (educational attainment by age 22 and school disciplinary action) in Black and White families. Methods: Data were drawn from the 22 years of follow-up of the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study (FFCWS), a longitudinal study following a cohort of children born in large U.S. cities between 1998 and 2000. Participants included 1,647 Black and 689 White young adults who were followed from birth to age 22. Maternal education, household income, family structure, and paternal incarceration were assessed at baseline (birth), and two youth educational outcomes, namely educational attainment and any school disciplinary action, were assessed at age 22 (emerging adulthood). Using structural equation modeling (SEM), mediation analysis was conducted to examine whether household income partially mediates the effects of maternal education on youth educational outcomes, with race (Black vs. White) as the moderator. Results: The results indicated that maternal education was positively associated with youth educational attainment and negatively associated with school disciplinary actions in the pooled sample that included both Black and White families. However, the effect of parental education on educational attainment at age 22 was weaker for Black than White families. Household income partially mediated racial differences in the effect of maternal education on youth educational attainment. The results suggest that lower household income in Black families is why we observe a weaker effect of parental education on youth educational attainment for Black youth compared to White youth. Conclusions: Findings suggest that the lower household income of families is one of the reasons high maternal education levels are associated with lower youth educational attainment in Black than White families. Addressing income disparities through tax policies may help reduce racial disparities in education and promote educational equity for Black youth.
DO  - Racial Gap in Household Income Explains Black-White Disparities in the Intergenerational Transmission of Educational Attainment
TI  - 10.31586/ojer.2024.962
ER  -