WASHINGTON, Feb. 7 (UPI) -- Long-term poverty adversely affects the social behavior and mental health of children, a University of Alberta researcher says.
Using the U.S. National Longitudinal Study of Youth, Canadian sociologist Lisa Strohschein said the data shows that children born in impoverished households tend to have more anti-social behavior -- defined as bullying, being cruel, breaking things, cheating or telling lies.
That behavior persists in homes that remain in poverty and abates in homes that improve their financial circumstances, she said.
Poverty also adversely affects children's mental health, but that abates somewhat as children age regardless of the family's finances, she said.
"It may be that the things that are associated with loss of income such as parental divorce and unexpected job loss are much more important," Strohschein said. "In the future, it will be important to explore how such events intersect with income loss to affect child mental health."
The study was published in the American Sociological Association's Journal of Health and Social Behavior.
