Huifeng Shi1, Chunxia Zhao2, Yan Dou1, Xiaoqian Duan1, Lingyan Yang3, Yufeng Du1, Xiaona Huang2, Xiaoli Wang1, Jingxu Zhang4. 1. Department of Maternal and Child Health, Peking University School of Public Health, 38 Xueyuan Road, Haidian District, Beijing, 100191, China. 2. Section of Health, Nutrition, and Water, Environment and Sanitation, UNICEF China, Beijing, China. 3. School of Mathematical Sciences, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, China. 4. Department of Maternal and Child Health, Peking University School of Public Health, 38 Xueyuan Road, Haidian District, Beijing, 100191, China. jxzhang@bjmu.edu.cn.
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: This study assessed the early social-emotional development of left-behind children (LBC) in rural China and determined the mediating factors linking parental migration to LBC's developmental outcome. METHODS: We used cross-sectional data of 845 LBC under 3 years old from five counties in rural China in 2018. Social-emotional problems were assessed by the ages and stages questionnaires: social-emotional. Family structure, function, and child nurturing care practices were measured to explore their roles in potential pathways of parental migration affecting early social-emotional development. RESULTS: 36.4% of LBC were identified with social-emotional problems; the rate was higher among LBC with migrant parents than those with migrant fathers (39.9% vs. 30.5%, adjusted OR: 1.40 [95% CI 1.01, 1.93]). Results of structural equation modeling reveal that caregivers' low education and depressive symptoms, poor migrant-caregiver communication, family poverty, and no assistant caregiving weakened home parenting environment, and then contributed to LBC's social-emotional problems. CONCLUSIONS: LBC in early childhood may be at a high risk of social-emotional problems, which are primarily caused by the transition of family structure and function and consequently weakened home environment.
OBJECTIVES: This study assessed the early social-emotional development of left-behind children (LBC) in rural China and determined the mediating factors linking parental migration to LBC's developmental outcome. METHODS: We used cross-sectional data of 845 LBC under 3 years old from five counties in rural China in 2018. Social-emotional problems were assessed by the ages and stages questionnaires: social-emotional. Family structure, function, and child nurturing care practices were measured to explore their roles in potential pathways of parental migration affecting early social-emotional development. RESULTS: 36.4% of LBC were identified with social-emotional problems; the rate was higher among LBC with migrant parents than those with migrant fathers (39.9% vs. 30.5%, adjusted OR: 1.40 [95% CI 1.01, 1.93]). Results of structural equation modeling reveal that caregivers' low education and depressive symptoms, poor migrant-caregiver communication, family poverty, and no assistant caregiving weakened home parenting environment, and then contributed to LBC's social-emotional problems. CONCLUSIONS: LBC in early childhood may be at a high risk of social-emotional problems, which are primarily caused by the transition of family structure and function and consequently weakened home environment.
Entities:
Keywords:
Early childhood; Left-behind children; Parental migration; Rural China; Social–emotional development