Lareau's research examines how small moments and contingencies in childhood can have large consequences for life outcomes. She studied 88 families from ages 10 to 30, finding that structural forces like policies on housing, education and the labor market intersected with families' economic resources and cultural knowledge to shape diverging paths. For example, Harold and Karl both faced challenges growing up poor, but their different networks of support influenced whether they could achieve goals like owning a business. Lareau's work underscores how social inequality persists through key moments that reproduce advantage or disadvantage across generations.

1. “Unequal Childhoods, Unequal
Adulthoods: Small Moments
and Large Consequences”
Annette Lareau
Stanley I. Sheerr Professor
University of Pennsylvania
University of Virginia
April 9, 2015

2. • “The American Dream that we were all
raised on is a simple but powerful one -
-- if you work hard and play by the
rules, you should be given a chance to
go as far as your God-given ability will
take you.”

3. Sociological research
Social origins: life paths
Powerful findings,
But focus is on outcomes=>less on processes
Need attention to key moments
Contingencies
Things might have turned out differently

4. Social position => life outcomes
PROCESS
 Economic resources
 Cultural knowledge
 Ways work together: pattern of CONTINGENCY
 *economic resources
 *cultural knowledge
 *contacts: key adults to help

5. Structural forces:
• Wage set by minimum wage
• Eligibility for food stamps and other poverty programs
• Regulation (or lack there of) of occupational safety
• Immigration policies, citizenship policies
• Police services, fire fighter services
• Economic investment in communities
• Prison sentences
• Health insurance policies
• Deregulation of trucking industry

7. Immediate college enrollment rates among high school
graduates, by parents’ education: 1992-2009
Source: National Science Foundation. “STEM Education Data and Trends: Who goes straight to college after high school
graduation.” http://www.nsf.gov/nsb/sei/edTool/data/highschool-03.html. Accessed 29 July 2014.

9. Financial Assets by Education of Household
Head, 2010 Survey of Consumer Finances
Education of
Household Head
Checking and
savings
accounts
Retirement
accounts
All households 92.5 50.4
No high school
diploma
77.5 17.1
High school diploma 90.0 40.6
Some college 94.6 48.6
College degree 98.4 70.5
Source: Bricker, Jesse, Arthur B. Kennickell, Kevin B. Moore, and John Sabelhaus. “Changes in U.S. Family Finances from
2007 to 2010: Evidence from the Survey of Consumer Finances.” 2012. Federal Reserve Bulletin 98 (2): 1-80

10. Labor Market
About ½ of jobs are filled via informal ties
Nancy DiTomaso: 60% of her sample got one job
via a tie
Networks are segregated: limits job
opportunities

11. Segregated networks are common
• “It has long been known that people prefer to
associate with others who are similar to themselves,
which produces segregation in people’s social
networks along a variety of core demographic
statuses, including race/ethnicity, age, education, and
income.” (DiPrete et al. 2011: 1236)
Source: DiPrete, Thomas A., Andrew Gelman, Tyler McCormick, Julien Teitler, and Tian Zheng. 2011.
“Segregation in Social Networks Based on Acquaintanceship and Trust.” American Journal of Sociology, 116(4):
1234-83. See also McPherson, Miller, Lynn Smith-Lovin, and James M. Cook. 2001. “Birds of a Feather:
Homophily in Social Networks.” Annual Review of Sociology 27:. 415-444

12. Class and cultural logic of child rearing
Study of 88 families: 10 year old children
middle-class, working-class and poor
White and African-American
Middle class:
Concerted cultivation
Working-class and poor:
Accomplishment of natural growth
2003

13. Two follow-up studies
• # 1: At age 19/20 years: 2003/2004
• Interviews with all 12 youths, mothers and
• fathers of 11 of 12 youths, and siblings
• # 2: At age 29/30 years, 2014
• Information on 10 of 12
• Direct contact with 8 of 12
• 2 hour interviews with 5 focal adults

14. Relationship:
• Holiday card with a bill tucked into it for many of the
12 youths
• Gifts at weddings and births of babies
• Gift cards at holidays for families with kids who are
struggling economically
• Some have terminated (see Lareau 2011), but rest
greeted warmly
• 2nd edition) but, if not, greeted warmly

15. Definition of social class
Middle-class: one parent is employed in a position that
either entails substantial managerial authority or
which centrally draws upon highly complex,
educationally certified (i.e. college level) skills. [BA+]
Working-class: at least one parent is employed in a
position with little or no managerial authority and which
does not draw on highly complex, educationally certified
skills. [usually high school grad or high school drop-out]
Poor: parents not in the labor force in regular, continuous
basis

16. Character of Institutions
•Many unwritten rules
•Eroding public services
•*example: Decline in high school counselors
•But working-class youth more dependent on
these services than middle-class youth

17. Conceptual tools: cultural capital
• culture as a resource which can yield profits
• *provides access to scarce rewards
• *is subject to monopolization
• *under certain conditions, may be transmitted
from one generation to the next
• In Bourdieu’s work and others, knowledge is key
• But not sufficiently developed in literature

18. Harold McAllister
African-American, poor family
When 10:
Lived with mother, two sisters, brother, and assorted cousins in public housing
Mother received AFDC
Father was mechanic (never married); Harold visited regularly
Large, rich extended family network: many family gatherings
Loved basketball
Vacation Bible study, but otherwise no organized activities; played with friends
outside
Good student, no disciplinary issues (didn’t do homework)
lNot a source of information about possible jobs

19. Harold McAllister: Overview
The Historical and Social
Structural Context
 Residence
 School
 Work
 Incarceration
 Child support
Going forward:
=>Ability to realize life goals
Pathway had numerous
branching points or
contingencies.
Other pathways possible, but
depended on a combination of:
 Economic factors
 Cultural knowledge
 Adults available to help

20. Harold McAllister
1. Federal housing policy: public
housing torn down
*Rental housing: substandard
2. Urban school district: few
counselors
* Cumbersome district transfer
process
3. Workplaces: ambiguous
criteria for promotion
4. Child support policies
5. Mass incarceration
6. Police
* Network fell apart
 Lost housing, moved around
 Substandard housing moved in with Dad
 School
*college prep program
*basketball team
*attendance
 Applied for numerous jobs, passed up: quit
 Baby’s momma, DNA, pays child support
 Running streets: arrests
Police
 Extended family shattered

21. Harold’s goals: Own a barbershop or a bar
What would be involved?
 2 years of barber school (need
living expenses)
 Pass test for state license
 Pay taxes to city
 Driver’s license or governmental
ID
 Bank account
 Living expenses
 He sees it as a 75% chance of
happening.
 Limited institutional footprint
 No driver’s license
 No bank account
 No retirement account
 No car
BUT
 Pays child support through the
state
 Had a DNA test to prove
paternity
Heavy marijuana user

22. Consistent with other studies

23. Karl Greeley
White man, grew up in poor family
Mother lost custody of kids due to a drug problem (when Karl was 4 yr, his
sister was 18 mos, his brother was 1 month)
Mom regained custody when he was 8 years old
Father not around
“Step-pop” around (never married) but separated when he was a teen; still
around
Lived in Section 8 (rent subsidized) apartment
At 10 years old, Mom was happy, kids were pleased to be back together
Walked dogs with neighbor, played outside, tested 156 IQ test

24. Karl Greeley
1. Foster care system
2. Federal housing policy:
Section 8 housing
3. Urban school district: few
counselors: complete
dependence on the counselor
4. Hospital policies
5. Section 8, cumbersome
6. Work policies
* Network small, grandfather
difficult/controlling
 Brother turned her in
 Arrested, rehab children “sent to
China”
 Had Section 8 apt; fraud, found
another one
 School
*middle school did well
Small high school; only white student
Transferred to Lower Richmond
 Job in grocery store “through someone
in the neighborhood”
Fired: filed for unemployment, got job
back
 Never arrested: police harassment
 Anxiety:

25. Karl’s goals: “work in computers”
What would be involved?
 Clarity about the goal
 Community college
 Four year college?
 Internship, job in computer repair shop
Networks:
 Mother dead
 Father dead
 Step-pop disabled
 Close with sister, nephew, and brother
 Estranged from 2 uncles and grandpop
 Limited institutional footprint
 got driver’s license at 30
 Bought a car
 has bank account
 Has health care
 No retirement account
 Feels stuck
 Lives check to check
 Networks:
Construction, school district janitor,
pizza shop
marijuana user

26. If had some of same challenges with upper-
middle-class mother
 Tutors
 Other school
 College preparation
 Lawyers
 Networks of doctors when in
hospital
 Paid for barbershop school
 Down payment on building
 Help with license applications

27. Taking stock
 Average students
 No major behavior problems
 Mothers strongly wanted
educational success in high
school
 Mothers strongly support paid
work in labor force
 Had hopes and dreams
 Live in a historical context of
federal, state, and local
policies which helped to set
the parameters for their lives
 As grew up, lives unfold
 Economic constraints
 Cultural knowledge
 Adults/networks
Worked together:
Many branching points
Many contingencies

28. Contributions of sociology
 Live in an unequal society
 Social origins cast a long
shadow for many, but not all,
children
 But: not determined
 Points when it might have
been different
 Harold: mechanic
 Karl: computer repair person
 Need to unpack the interaction
of structural forces, historical
moments, and biography
 Need to highlight key moments
 Some moments are more
consequential than others
 Cultural knowledge is often the
lynchpin, but interwoven with
other important factors