SCHOOL ATTENDANCE AND PARENTAL DISABILITY

Socio economic problems exacerbate school drop-out that harms youths by limiting their knowledge and future development. Scholars have investigated both the variables linked to school attendance and the problems faced by impaired children. However, it has not yet been considered whether school attendance is harmed when parents are impaired. In order to partially fill this gap, we test the hypothesis that parental disability increases school drop-out through a sample of 598 youths between 14 and 17 years old in the municipality of San Andres Cholula (Mexico). The instrumental variables probit model estimates emphasize the importance of the mother's role, because when she is impaired or has a low level of schooling, a drop in children assistance is more likely to occur. However, children living in a mother-headed household show higher school attendance.