The Long-term consequences of growing up with a single parent

The objective of this research project is to examine the long-term consequences of being raised in a single parent household. We examine the impact of parental separation or divorce on the adult labour market behaviour of children ten to fifteen years after the event. In particular, we relate the family income and household characteristics of a cohort of individuals who are 16 to 19 years of age in 1982 to their labour market earnings, reliance on social transfers (UI and Income Assistance), and marital/fertility outcomes during the early 1990s, when they are in their late 20s and early 30s. Our data is based upon the linked income tax records developed by us at Statistics Canada, the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics, and the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth.