Our original proposal, B2492, is about the joint development of health, skills and education. From the start, this involved studying the role of genetic and early-life environmental factors in shaping individuals’ health and education trajectories.

This proposal fits directly within our aim to study the “interactions between genes and family composition”, focussing on the effects of “interactions between genes and family composition on children’s test scores and health behaviours”. Indeed, parental separation implies a drastic change in the family structure and composition, less time investment, as well as mental and financial distress. This has been shown to have a number of consequences for child mental health outcomes. In this paper, we will quantify the extent to which the effects of father absence on child outcomes are modified by children’s genetic predisposition.

Background: Parent separation has been shown to have a number of consequences for the child mental health outcomes. On the other hand there are a number of studies on the effects of father involvement and paternity leave policy on children. In this paper, we would like to contribute to the literature by showing how the effects of father absence on child outcomes are modified by children’s genetic predisposition for such health outcomes as BMI and depression.

Research Questions: What happens to children’s education and health outcomes after fathers leave family? Does it harm more those with higher genetic risk for mental health issues and risky health behaviours? Are children with higher genetic predisposition for education more resilient to the absence of a father?