published in: Schriften des Vereins für Socialpolitik, 2006, 313, 39-54.
We examine the effect of single motherhood on children's secondary school track choice
using a sample of 14 years old children drawn from the German Socio-Economic Panel. In
line with previous studies for the U.S., the U.K. and Sweden, we find a negative correlation
between disrupted family structure and children's educational outcome. Looking for
alternative explanations for this correlation, we use ordered probit regression models to
control for factors related to single motherhood such as lower educational background, lower
household income and higher labor supply of the mother. Our evidence suggests that single
parenthood reduces school attainment mainly because it is associated with lower resources
(income and time) available for the child.
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