Advertisement
This ad is displayed using third party content and we do not control its accessibility features.
Close Banner
Advertisement
This ad is displayed using third party content and we do not control its accessibility features.

Parents With Fancy Degrees May Have More Stressed-Out Kids, Study Finds

Sarah Regan
Author:
June 29, 2020
Sarah Regan
mbg Spirituality & Relationships Editor
By Sarah Regan
mbg Spirituality & Relationships Editor
Sarah Regan is a Spirituality & Relationships Editor, and a registered yoga instructor. She received her bachelor's in broadcasting and mass communication from SUNY Oswego, and lives in Buffalo, New York.
Group of Graduates Smiling For a Photo
Image by Sean Locke / Stocksy
June 29, 2020

Parents may think that, by having a college degree, they're setting their children up for success. But according to new research, there may be an unlikely side effect of having college-educated parents: more stress upon entering school.

While starting college can be stressful for any new student, research by the University of Bern in Switzerland and the Ruhr-University Bochum in Germany has found starting college is 1particularly1 stressful1 for kids coming from homes where parents have a university degree themselves.

Stressful expectations.

The goal of the research was to determine whether educational backgrounds in the family would affect stress levels of teens entering college. To do this, researchers examined strands of hair from 71 young women. Cortisol, the stress hormone, can accumulate in hair when levels are high for an extended period of time.

Participants filled out questionnaires about things like stress and their parents' education levels, plus gave three strands of hair for the team to study. By looking at the most recent hair growth, the researchers could get a good sense of the individual's stress levels in recent weeks since the new semester had begun.

The results showed having at least one parent with a university degree is associated with more stress for first-year college students.

Why? The study's co-authors, Alex Bertrams, Ph.D., and Nina Minkley, Ph.D., believe it comes down to maintaining the social status of your family. Those with college-educated parents may feel extra pressure to "keep the ball rolling," so to speak, where those whose parents do not have degrees feel like there's simply less to lose. "Individuals from non-academic families are particularly unstressed because they (and their families, respectively) can only gain (but not lose) an academic status," they write in the paper on their findings.

Interestingly, other studies have echoed similar findings, with children from academic households going to college even if their performance in high school wasn't exemplary, coming back to the idea of pressure and expectations.

Relieving the pressure on our kids.

It's no secret that stress can cause a lot of issues for physical and mental health, but understanding the underlying causes behind stress makes it that much easier to deal with. These findings are an important reminder for parents to be conscious of putting too much pressure on their kids, particularly as it relates to academic achievement.

If you sense your child is feeling the pressure of doing well in school, having an open dialogue about self-worth as it relates to achievement could be just the reassurance they need. How can you help your child feel validated and confident in themselves regardless of their external successes? Even simply letting them know you are proud of them, no matter what, could help alleviate some of their worries.

These conversations may be particularly important to have for parents who themselves have academic degrees. Even if your kid is nowhere near college age, starting the conversation about achievement and self-worth early on can help set them up for optimal well-being as they get older.

Watch Next

Enjoy some of our favorite clips from classes

Watch Next

Enjoy some of our favorite clips from classes

What Is Meditation?

Mindfulness/Spirituality | Light Watkins

Box Breathing

Mindfulness/Spirituality | Gwen Dittmar

What Breathwork Can Address

Mindfulness/Spirituality | Gwen Dittmar

The 8 Limbs of Yoga - What is Asana?

Yoga | Caley Alyssa

Two Standing Postures to Open Up Tight Hips

Yoga | Caley Alyssa

How Plants Can Optimize Athletic Performance

Nutrition | Rich Roll

What to Eat Before a Workout

Nutrition | Rich Roll

How Ayurveda Helps Us Navigate Modern Life

Nutrition | Sahara Rose

Messages About Love & Relationships

Love & Relationships | Esther Perel

Love Languages

Love & Relationships | Esther Perel

Related Videos (10)

What Is Meditation?

Box Breathing

What Breathwork Can Address

The 8 Limbs of Yoga - What is Asana?

Two Standing Postures to Open Up Tight Hips

How Plants Can Optimize Athletic Performance

What to Eat Before a Workout

How Ayurveda Helps Us Navigate Modern Life

Messages About Love & Relationships

Love Languages

Advertisement
This ad is displayed using third party content and we do not control its accessibility features.

More On This Topic

more Relationships
Advertisement
This ad is displayed using third party content and we do not control its accessibility features.
Advertisement
This ad is displayed using third party content and we do not control its accessibility features.