Relevance of parental aspirations in determining schooling and work for adolescent girls in Pakistan

Minhaj U. Haque, Population Council--Islamabad

Pakistan currently has the largest cohort of young people in its history (50 million aged 10-29), and subsequent cohorts are projected to be even larger. This paper investigates the relevance of parental aspirations in influencing the lives of young girls (ages 15-24 years) in Pakistan. It also explores the role of socio-demographic and opportunity related community factors that may or may not influence the lives of young girls in comparison to the aspirations of parents. The analysis is based on the data from nationally representative survey “Transitions to Adulthood: Education, Work and Marriage among Adolescents and Youth in Pakistan. In total, 8,074 young people were interviewed from 4,530 households along with an adult of the family. Results will be segregated by gender of parent, region, and socio-economic status. Logistic regressions will be used to determine the influence of the set of factors on education and work of young females in Pakistan.