Table 2. Depression at Age 40 by Educational Attainment, Aspirations, and Expectations at Age 25, National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 Cohorta .
| Variable | Risk Ratio (95% CI) | P Value |
|---|---|---|
| Educational attainment, unadjusted | ||
| College graduate versus high school graduate | 0.61 (0.48–0.77) | <.001 |
| College graduate versus less than high school graduate | 0.34 (0.26–0.45) | |
| High school graduate versus less than high school graduate | 0.57 (0.47–0.68) | |
| Educational attainment adjusted for sex only, Wald test value for sex, P < .005 | ||
| College graduate versus high school graduate | 0.62 (0.49–0.78) | <.001 |
| College graduate versus less than high school graduate | 0.34 (0.26–0.45) | |
| High school graduate versus less than high school graduate | 0.56 (0.46–0.67) | |
| Educational attainment adjusted for child covariatesb; Wald test value for child covariates, P < .005 | ||
| College graduate versus high school graduate | 0.62 (0.48–0.81) | <.001 |
| College graduate versus less than high school graduate | 0.39 (0.28–0.52) | |
| High school graduate versus less than high school graduate | 0.62 (0.51–0.75) | |
| Educational attainment adjusted for child and adolescent covariatesc; Wald test value for adolescent covariates, P < .56 | ||
| College graduate versus high school graduate | 0.62 (0.48–0.81) | <.001 |
| College graduate versus less than high school graduate | 0.39 (0.29–0.53) | |
| High school graduate versus less than high school graduate | 0.62 (0.51–0.75) | |
| Educational attainment adjusted for child, adolescent, and adult covariatesd; Wald test value for adult covariates, P < .005 | ||
| College graduate versus high school graduate | 0.73 (0.56–0.96) | <.05 |
| College graduate versus less than high school graduate | 0.55 (0.40–0.75) | <.001 |
| High school graduate versus less than high school graduate | 0.75 (0.62–0.91) | <.01 |
| Educational aspirations adjusted for child, adolescent, and adult covariates | ||
| College graduate versus high school graduate | 0.93 (0.79–1.10) | >.05 |
| College graduate versus less than high school graduate | 0.71 (0.42–1.19) | |
| High school graduate versus less than high school graduate | 0.76 (0.46–1.27) | |
| Educational expectations adjusted for child, adolescent, and adult covariates | ||
| College graduate versus high school graduate | 0.82 (0.68–0.98) | <.05 |
| College graduate versus less than high school graduate | 0.59 (0.44–0.79) | .001 |
| High school graduate versus less than high school graduate | 0.72 (0.56–0.93) | <.05 |
| Educational attainment adjusted for child, adolescent, and adult covariates, plus educational aspirations and educational expectations | ||
| College graduate versus high school graduate | 0.77 (0.58–1.02) | >.05 |
| College graduate versus less than high school graduate | 0.62 (0.44–0.88) | .01 |
| High school graduate versus less than high school graduate | 0.78 (0.58–1.04) | >.05 |
National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 (19). All adjusted models are adjusted for sex and race (except for sex-only models).
Age in 1979, father’s educational attainment, mother’s educational attainment, highest educational attainment of either parent, speaking a foreign language as a child, being born outside of the United States, living in the South (Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, or West Virginia) as a child, and living in an urban setting as a child.
Region of residence in the United States as an adolescent and living in an urban setting as an adolescent.
Wealth (wealth = assets – debts) as an adult, income as an adult, total family income as an adult, family size as an adult, number of dependents as an adult, marital status as an adult, living in the South as an adult, and living in an urban setting as an adult.