Education and psychological distress in adolescence and mid‐life: Do private schools make a difference?

Abstract

This article extends the evidence base on childhood circumstances, education and psychological distress. We examine the link between childhood advantage and disadvantage, the type of school attended during adolescence and psychological distress at ages 16 and 42. The analysis uses a large, population‐based birth cohort study, the 1970 British Cohort Study (BCS70) (n = 17,198) using a structural equation modelling (SEM) approach. More advantaged young people were more likely to attend private schools, but we find no evidence for an effect of private schooling on psychological distress for men, and for women there was an association between private schooling and raised psychological distress at age 16. Having a university degree was associated with a modest reduction in psychological distress in mid‐life. We establish that maternal psychological distress at age 10 was a risk factor for the offspring’s psychological distress both in adolescence and in mid‐life, and adolescent psychological distress predicts psychological distress in mid‐life. We conclude that schools which are academically successful do not necessarily provide wider benefits in terms of mental health.

A qualitative study of the perspectives of designated safeguarding leads responding to child protection concerns in fee‐paying schools

“…It is important to note that the DSLs in the boarding schools were unconvinced by prevalent claims that the boarding school experience caused psychological harm to some children (Sullivan et al, 2021; Turner, 2019). They were particularly resistant to the accusation that boarding school environments constitute a form of child abuse, sometimes referred to as ‘normalised parental neglect’ or ‘privileged abandonment’ (Duffell & Basset, 2016; Schaverien, 2004; Schaverien, 2015), and that for some pupils boarding schools increase psychological distress (Sullivan et al, 2021; Turner, 2019). Conversely, they suggested that where children were exposed to abuse and neglect in their home environment or had emotionally absent parents, boarding school can be a place of safety and stability, and indeed may protect such children from neglectful parental behaviours.…”

“…Emotional neglect is defined as carers who are unresponsive to a child's basic emotional needs, including failing to interact or give affection, and failing to nurture a child's self‐esteem and sense of identity (Howarth, 2007). Existing research highlights that children in affluent families may be subject to excessive pressures to achieve academically and to participate in a broad range of extracurricular activities, as well as experiencing isolation from their parents (Duffell & Basset, 2016; Schaverien, 2015; Sullivan et al, 2021), which puts them at increased risk of emotional and psychological distress, including anxiety disorders and depression, self‐harming behaviours, eating disorders and substance misuse problems (Luthar et al, 2013; Luthar & Becker, 2002; Luthar & Latendresse, 2006; Shermann, 2006). Further, two serious case reviews (SCRs) involving children from affluent backgrounds who have died (Carmi & Walker‐Hall, 2015) or suffered serious harm in their families (Brabbs, 2011) make evident that the safeguarding professionals were intimidated by the parents' social position, which significantly impacted how they interacted with the families and affected their ability to successfully intervene to secure the children's safety.…”

Geographic, Socio-Demographic and School Type Variation in Adolescent Wellbeing and Mental Health and Links with Academic Competence in the United Arab Emirates

“…After controlling for SES and other socio-demographic and school characteristics, LS was higher in private or semi-private schools in six countries and lower in nine countries, suggesting that the wellbeing impact of attending private schools may differ by country. Studies in the UK have found that private schools offer no mental health and wellbeing advantages (Henderson et al, 2020 ; Sullivan et al, 2021 ), with evidence indicating that attending private schools is associated with more psychological distress at age 16 for females and predicts it at the age of 42 (Sullivan et al, 2021 ). Liu and Zhao ( 2016 ) found that Chinese youth attending private schools also reported lower LS, experiencing more racial discrimination than their public-school peers.…”