Timing Matters, Scarring Endures: Parental Marital Status Trajectories and Adolescent Deviant Behaviour

Abstract

ABSTRACT Under the second demographic transition, the increasing number of children from divorced families may present a range of social challenges. Examining the association between parents' marital trajectories and adolescent deviant behaviour therefore carries significant social relevance. Drawing on data from the China Education Panel Survey, this study employs sequence analysis and a comparative supervised‐learning regression framework to identify five distinct parental marital status trajectories and assess their associations with adolescent deviant behaviour. The findings reveal that stable marital trajectories were associated with lower levels of deviant behaviour, whereas the partnership–dissolution trajectories showed notable timing‐related heterogeneity. Furthermore, China's unique contextual factors—including multi‐generational cohabitation, the positive association between socio‐economic status and divorce, and the increase in stepfamilies—were associated with different levels of deviant behaviour across parental marital status trajectories. The empirical results of this study highlight context‐dependent relevance of traditional family resources to children's behavioural development amid changes in family structure. Social policies must consider the specific needs of an increasing number of non‐traditional family structures to support the healthy development of adolescents from divorced families and to promote social stability.