Timing of First Childbirth and Young Women’s Postsecondary Education in an Inner-City Minority Cohort

Abstract

The present study investigated the relationships between the timing of women’s first childbirth and their postsecondary education using an inner-city minority cohort. The study sample (695 females) was drawn from the Chicago Longitudinal Study (CLS), an ongoing investigation of a panel of low-income minority children (94% African American) born in 1980 who grew up in high-poverty neighborhoods in Chicago. The findings indicated that, taking into account sociodemographic factors and early academic achievement, first childbirths before age 18 and between ages 19 and 21 were significantly associated with lower rates of college attendance and bachelor (BA) degree completion. First childbirths between ages 21 and 25 were not significantly associated with any outcome of postsecondary education.

Keywords

age at first childbirth women’s postsecondary education minority at-risk group

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