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Title: Effects of Residence, Family Background and Household Structure on the Educational Attainment of Young Adults
Resulting in 1 citation.
1. Wenk, Deeann L.
Hardesty, Constance L.
Effects of Residence, Family Background and Household Structure on the Educational Attainment of Young Adults
In: Investing in People: The Human Capital Needs of Rural America. L.S. Beaulieu and D. Mulkey, eds. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1995
Cohort(s): NLSY79
Publisher: Perseus Books Group
Keyword(s): Educational Attainment; Family Background and Culture; Geographical Variation; High School Completion/Graduates; Household Structure; Regions; Residence; Rural/Urban Differences; Schooling; Urban and Regional Planning

Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher.

Despite overall rises in the U.S., educational levels have been persistently lower in rural areas and in the south than in urban areas and the north. This study uses a modified status attainment approach to explore the influence of residence on high school completion and college attendance. Two questions are posed: (1) Does residence have an important effect on educational attainment after controlling for individual characteristics, family background and household structure? (2) Do the effects of family background and household structure vary by residence? A subsample of 3,854 men and women aged 14 to 22 in 1979 taken from the NLSY is used for analysis. Residence is measured as north/south and urban/rural residence at the time of expected high school graduation. The results indicate that the effects of family background account for the negative effects of living in the rural south on educational attainment. The within region analysis shows few differences suggesting that rural youth are just as able as other youth to utilize family resources to their advantage.
Bibliography Citation
Wenk, Deeann L. and Constance L. Hardesty. "Effects of Residence, Family Background and Household Structure on the Educational Attainment of Young Adults" In: Investing in People: The Human Capital Needs of Rural America. L.S. Beaulieu and D. Mulkey, eds. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1995