International Journal of Population Studies RESEARCH ARTICLE Household structure and child education in Cambodia Patrick Heuveline* and Savet Hong California Center for Population Research (CCPR), University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Abstract: We analyze the effects of household structure on education in Cambodia. Consistent evidence documents that residence with both biological parents benefits children’s education in Western countries. Elsewhere, the issue is gaining more attention with the growing number of “left-behind children” due to adult migration and, possibly, changes in family behavior. The extant record is both thinner and more contrasted, however. Controlling for the presence of grandparents and some household characteristics, we find children residing with both biological parents are more likely to be enrolled in school, in the appropriate grade for their age, and literate than those living with only one parent. The effect sizes appear comparable to those in most ARTICLE INFO Western countries, but the effects shrink or even disappear when grandparents are Received: October 9, 2017 Accepted: February 28, 2018 present. The results for children not residing with either parent are mixed, possibly Published Online: April 4, 2018 resulting from negative effects for some children and positive selection for some others. *CORRESPONDING AUTHOR Keywords: education;family demography; global/international; household structure; Patrick Heuveline California Center for Population single parents Research (CCPR) 4284 Public Affairs Bldg University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) 1. Introduction Los Angeles, LA 90095 In this paper, we analyze the effects of household structure and children’s living
[email protected] arrangements on their educational outcomes in Cambodia. Such effects have been CITATION extensively and fairly consistently documented in high-income Nations.