Ethnic Disadvantage or Resilience? Parenting and Children’s Socio-Emotional Challenges in the UK

Chia Liu , University of St Andrews

Among the substantial body of literature on second-generation in Europe, little is known about the experiences of growing up as minority children. A growing phenomenon—the widespread use of digital devices among youths—has been linked to adverse socioemotional outcomes for adolescents, but this relationship is rare explored among ethnic minority groups. Using the Youth and Parenting Questionnaires from Understanding Society, this study examines ethnic differences in parenting styles, measured through the Parenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire (PSDQ), and children’s social media use in relation to socioemotional health, assessed via the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) for youths aged 10 to 15 across ethnic groups. Findings suggest several differences among ethnic groups. First, South Asian, Black, and Caribbean children spend fewer hours on social media during school days compared to White children. Second, they are subject to higher levels of parental control and lower levels of indulgence. Third, they report fewer socioemotional difficulties compared to White children. Fourth, gender differences in parenting are more pronounced among White parents, e.g., White mothers are more authoritative and less permissive than White fathers, while minority parents show greater similarity across genders. The next step of this project is to use mediation analysis to assess whether ethnic differences in SDQ scores among youths operate through (1) parenting styles, (2) conflicting parenting styles, or (3) social media usage. This research not only sheds light on the state minority resilience in the UK but also uses minority experiences as a lens to examine challenges of growing up in the digital age.

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 Presented in Session P2. Families, Fertility, and the Life Course 2