TITLE:
An Examination of Parental College Expectations’ Mediating Role between Children’s Savings Accounts and Children’s Educational Attainment by Income Level
AUTHORS:
Haotian Zheng, Briana Starks, James Ellis, Megan O’Brien, William Elliott
KEYWORDS:
Children’s Savings Accounts, Early Education, Savings, Assets, Poverty
JOURNAL NAME:
Sociology Mind,
Vol.10 No.3,
July
27,
2020
ABSTRACT: Even though ownership of a Children’s Savings Account (CSA), children’s
academic achievement, and parental college expectations are potentially key
components for closing the inequality gap in education, the interdependence of
these elements is not yet fully understood. Guided by the Theory of Planned
Behavior, we utilize structural equation modeling (SEM) in this cross-sectional
study to examine the mediating role of parental college expectations on the
relationship between ownership of a Harold Alfond College Challenge (HACC)
account and parents’ perception of children’s math and reading abilities by the
level of household income. Although it is currently a universal, opt-out CSA
program available to all babies born in Maine, HACC started in 2008 as an
opt-in program, and it is this timeframe that is the focus of the current
study. SEM models utilizing survey data from a sample of Maine parents reveal a
positive association between the Alfond Grant enrollment and parental college
expectations among low-to-moderate income families. Moreover, parental
expectations are found to be a complete mediator between having a HACC account
and parental perceptions of children’s math ability (but not reading ability)
among low-to-moderate income students. No findings were significant for high
income families. Correlational evidence from this study suggests that HACC may
complement schools’ academic objectives in Maine, particularly about improving
parents’ perceptions of their child’s math performance among low-to-moderate
income families. This study highlights the need for more rigorous research on
HACC and its potential effects on children’s educational attainment.