The effect of school summer holidays on inequalities in children and young people's mental health and cognitive ability in the UK using data from the millennium cohort study.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Summer learning loss has been the subject of longstanding concern among researchers, the public and policy makers. The aim of the current research was to investigate inequality changes in children's mental health and cognitive ability across the summer holidays.

Methods

We conducted linear and logistic regression analysis of mental health (borderline-abnormal total difficulty and prosocial scores on the strengths and difficulties questionnaire (SDQ)) and verbal cognitive ability (reading, verbal reasoning or vocabulary) at ages 7, 11 and 14, comparing UK Millennium Cohort Study members who were interviewed before and after the school summer holidays. Inequalities were assessed by including interaction terms in the outcome models between a discrete binary variable

SUBMITTER: Kromydas T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8782677 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature