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An Examination of the Role of Subjective Wellbeing and Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties in Predicting Academic Attainment at Age 7 and 17 in Northern Ireland
Whilst educational underachievement in Northern Ireland is widely recognised through years of socioeconomic inequalities, concern has recently been raised about the levels of wellbeing and mental health amongst our children and young people. This research draws on The Millennium Cohort Study to examine the role of subjective wellbeing and emotional and behavioural difficulties on academic attainment at ages 7 and 17 years old, for a sample of 841 students in Northern Ireland. Additional socioeconomic variables encompassing the level of household income, the home learning environment and the level of maternal education were also examined. Multiple linear regression analyses yielded interesting results. Whilst a decrease in subjective wellbeing was associated with an increase in academic outcome at age 7, subjective wellbeing at age 17 was no longer able to predict academic attainment. In contrast, an increase in emotional and behavioural difficulties was associated with a decrease in academic outcome across all regression models, with parent reported emotional and behavioural difficulties the strongest predictor for academic outcome at both ages. Furthermore, between the ages of 7 and 17, the variation in academic attainment explained by the model notably increases, highlighting the importance of early interventions. When considering the socioeconomic variables of household income and maternal education, both were positively correlated with academic outcomes, emphasising the need to mitigate for such socioeconomic inequalities. However, the home learning environment was unable to predict academic attainment at either age. Gender was also shown to play an important role, with girls outperforming boys academically at age 17 but experiencing a decrease in subjective wellbeing as they matured, whilst boys experienced higher levels of emotional and behavioural difficulties when they were younger. These findings have noteworthy implications for understanding the variation of academic outcomes in the context of subjective wellbeing, emotional and behavioural difficulties, and socio-economic factors.