Completion of secondary education among children born in deprived neighbourhoods in Amsterdam and Stockholm: The role of residential mobility and exposure to neighbourhood deprivation

Source abstract

Residential mobility during childhood is an important life event altering a child’s environment with possible long-term consequences. While moving frequently may be particularly disruptive, moving to a better environment might outweigh the disruptive effects. This study simultaneously examines frequency of moving and exposure to neighbourhood deprivation , and the association with completion of secondary education for children born in socio-economically deprived neighbourhoods in Amsterdam and Stockholm. Using full-population register data from the Netherlands and Sweden, residential mobility is studied from birth until age 16. Completion of secondary education is analysed at age 21, comparing children who do not move to children with diverse mobility patterns using propensity-weighted logistic regression models. Results indicate that the positive association between moving to a better neighbourhood and completion of secondary education is primarily explained by the better socio-economic position of upwardly mobile families. Frequent moving with long-term exposure to neighbourhood deprivation decreases the likelihood of completing secondary education, particularly in Stockholm. Children in intact families benefit more from upward mobility, while frequent moving is more detrimental for children in non-intact families. The study concludes that combinations of positive and negative childhood circumstances influence educational disparities, in which residential mobility, exposure to neighbourhood deprivation, and family stability play a crucial role in accumulations of (dis)advantage over a child’s life course.