Dynamic and Dyadic Relationships: An Extension of the Socioeconomic Status-Health Relationship

Dana Garbarski, University of Wisconsin-Madison

The prevalence of childhood chronic conditions has substantially increased over the last several decades, shifting the focus from survival to improving the quality of life of children and their families. This paper investigates the interrelationship of child health and maternal health and socioeconomic factors over time, focusing on the dynamic nature of maternal and child health and socioeconomic outcomes during childhood. Using a series of bivariate latent growth curve models, this paper examines the association between trajectories of child activity limitations and maternal health, labor force participation and household poverty status. There is evidence that child activity limitations and maternal health limitations have a positive contemporaneous association but do not have long-lasting effects on one another. However, maternal labor force participation at one point in time does appear to have a long-lasting effect on the trajectory of child activity limitations.