Abstract
This study examined longitudinal links between household income and
parents’ education and children’s trajectories of internalizing
and externalizing behaviors from age 8 to 10 reported by mothers, fathers, and
children. Longitudinal data from 1,190 families in 11 cultural groups in eight
countries (Colombia, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, Philippines, Sweden, Thailand, and
United States) were included. Multigroup structural equation models revealed
that household income, but not maternal or paternal education, was related to
trajectories of mother-, father-, and child-reported internalizing and
externalizing problems in each of the 11 cultural groups. Our findings highlight
that in low-, middle-, and high-income countries, socioeconomic risk is related
to children’s internalizing and externalizing problems, extending the
international focus beyond children’s physical health to their emotional
and behavioral development.