Peer-reviewed article
CONSEQUENCES ON SCHOOL PARTICIPATION AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT IN ROMANIAN TRANSNATIONAL FAMILIES
Aniela Matei, Mihaela Ghenţa, Luise-Mladen MACOVEI, Elen-Silvana Bobârnaț ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study examines how parental migration affects school participation and child development in Romanian transnational families. Researchers surveyed 804 parents and grandparents from two poverty-affected regions of Romania where migration is common. The findings show that lack of financial support increases the risk of school absenteeism, and when families lose their capacity to support children's education, it negatively affects both school attendance and child development. The research highlights that school dropout is more connected to inadequate parental oversight and authority than migration alone.
Key points
- Lack of financial support in transnational families creates risk of school absenteeism among children
- Dysfunctionality of the family's educational function has consequences on child development and school participation
- School dropout is more connected to lack of surveillance and parental authority than to migration itself
- Emotional support provided to children is affected after parental migration
- Study conducted in two developing regions of Romania most affected by poverty and migration
Limitations
The document provides no data on effect sizes, statistical significance, or specific outcome measures, making it difficult to assess the magnitude of the consequences. The study is descriptive and does not include a comparison group of non-transnational families, limiting causal inference.
Abstract
In families that have at least one parent working outside the country’s borders, known as transnational families, emotional support provided to children is affected after the migration. The phenomenon of school dropout among children whose parents are working abroad is increasing in families affected by poverty, even after the parents’ departure. The literature also emphasizes that the school drop-out is connected more to the lack of surveillance and parents’ authority. The aim of this paper is to explore the consequences on school participation and child development in Romanian transnational families. A quantitative research methodology was employed in this regard. The survey-based research had as a target group parents/grandparents from families who have children up to 17 years from Romanian transnational families. The total sample size was 804 parents/grandparents. The survey was carried out in two developing regions of Romania most affected by poverty and temporary/permanent migration. Our results indicate that the lack of financial support creates the risk of school absenteeism. The dysfunctionality of the family's educational function also has consequences on the child's development and school participation. Findings provide new insights regarding consequences on school participation and child development in Romanian transnational families.