Table 3.

Risk ratios (95% CIs) for socioemotional problem behaviour by mothers’ employment status trajectories, unadjusted and adjusted for early covariates and father employment, low household income and mothers’ psychological distress at 7 years

	Unadjusted RR	+ Covariates from birth to 9 months‡	+ Fathers’ employment (or no father figure) at 7 years	+ Low household income at 7 years	+ Mothers’ psychological distress at 7 years
	A	B	C	D	E
Employment status trajectories
Continuous employment	1.00	1.00	1.00	1.00	1.00
A single transition into employment	1.29 (1.05 to 1.59)*	1.01 (0.81 to 1.24)	1.00 (0.81 to 1.24)	1.00 (0.80 to 1.23)	0.97 (0.79 to 1.20)
Multiple transitions, concluding in employment	1.24 (0.98 to 1.57)	1.06 (0.84 to 1.35)	1.06 (0.84 to 1.35)	1.06 (0.83 to 1.34)	1.01 (0.80 to 1.27)
Multiple transitions, concluding in non-employment	2.10 (1.67 to 2.64)***	1.39 (1.09 to 1.78)**	1.35 (1.05 to 1.72)*	1.31 (1.02 to 1.68)*	1.14 (0.90 to 1.45)
A single transition into non-employment	1.98 (1.57 to 2.51)***	1.65 (1.30 to 2.08)***	1.63 (1.29 to 2.05)***	1.59 (1.26 to 2.01)***	1.36 (1.09 to 1.71)**
Continuous non-employment	2.61 (2.20 to 3.09)***	1.58 (1.30 to 1.90)***	1.48 (1.22 to 1.79)***	1.43 (1.18 to 1.75)***	1.26 (1.03 to 1.53)*

N=10 433.

*p<0.05, **p<0.01, ***p<0.001.

‡Lone parenthood at 9 months; mothers’ highest qualification at 9 months; mothers’ age at child's birth.