Ethnicity, Poverty, and Academic Success and Self-Esteem at the End of Primary School: Family and Child Processes of Agency and Emotion

This study examined how family poverty and child ethnicity influence self-esteem, academic performance, and school behavior at the end of primary school, focusing on the developmental mechanisms that mediate these relationships. Using data from the UK Millennium Cohort Study (n = 7,334), we tested a serial mediation model that included maternal psychological distress, maternal locus of control, and child self-regulation (independence and emotional dysregulation) as pathways linking family poverty and ethnicity to child outcomes. Results showed that family poverty was associated with increased maternal distress as well as lower maternal locus of control, both assessed in infancy, which in turn predicted lower independence and higher emotional dysregulation in early childhood. These child-level processes were significant predictors of self-esteem, academic performance, and school behavior at age 11. In contrast, ethnic minority status was not associated with maternal distress and showed largely direct effects on outcomes, with most ethnic minority groups reporting higher self-esteem than their white peers, and some groups showing better academic behavior or performance. These findings highlight the importance of addressing both structural inequalities and psychological mechanisms across developmental stages to promote equitable educational outcomes and psychosocial wellbeing in childhood.