Social capital is an important predictor of socioeconomic attainment, defined here as household income, but it is less clear how this relationship may vary by socioeconomic status (SES). Coleman's (1988) theory of social capital suggests that context is likely to influence exchanges of capital. Indeed, theory and research suggest that SES may either intensify or compensate for social capital in its relation to socioeconomic attainment. I seek to identify and understand these potential interactions using data from 101,163 participants of the European Social Survey (ESS). Results indicate that while social trust and both absolute and relative social involvement--two common measurements of social capital--predict socioeconomic attainment, the link with relative social involvement was stronger for individuals with lower SES, suggesting a compensation effect. Meanwhile, the link between absolute social involvement and socioeconomic attainment was stronger for those with higher SES, suggesting an intensification effect and highlighting that effects may vary across different measures of social capital. More generally, however, it is clear that SES is a meaningful factor in the value or use of at least some features of social capital.

Objectives: The purpose of this thesis is to explore the associations between childhood cognitive abilities assessed at age 8 and health and socioeconomic outcomes at age 29-36 in extremely low birth weight survivors (ELBW, <1000g). Methods: Using data from the McMaster Extremely Low Birth Weight Cohort Study, Study 1 explores the influence of overall intelligence, fluid intelligence, and language abilities on the prevalence of lifetime major depressive disorder in ELBW survivors and normal birth weight comparison subjects. Study 2 examines the mediating role of overall intelligence, fluid intelligence, language abilities, quantitative reasoning, and academic achievement on the association between being born at ELBW and socioeconomic outcomes at age 29-36. The final study examines the moderating role of childhood cognitive functioning on links between postnatal psychosocial adversity and adult personal earnings in ELBW survivors. Results: Results from Study 1 suggest that childhood cognitive abilities do not influence the onset of major depressive disorder in ELBW survivors, but are protective against depression in normal birth weight individuals. Study 2 suggests that childhood cognitive abilities partially mediate the association between being born at ELBW and income attainment in adulthood, but not full time employment. Further, Study 2 suggests that this association is stronger in ELBW survivors who have neurosensory impairments. Results of Study 3 suggest that enhanced childhood cognitive functioning is not protective against postnatal psychological adversity in influencing income attainment, as those ELBW survivors with higher childhood intelligence and who suffered psychological adversity reported lower annual income at age 30. Conclusions: This thesis suggests that overall and specific cognitive abilities significantly influence adult outcomes in ELBW survivors and normal birth weight individuals. However, while cognitive reserve may not be protective against psychological adversity in ELBW survivors, early cognitive abilities are a critical indicator of socioeconomic attainment in this vulnerable population. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc) / The following thesis explores the predictive role of childhood cognitive abilities on adult health and socioeconomic outcomes in extremely low birth weight survivors at age 29-36. Study 1 explores the influence of overall intelligence, fluid intelligence, and language abilities assessed at age 8 on the prevalence of lifetime major depressive disorder in extremely low birth weight survivors and normal birth weight comparison participants. Study 2 examines the mediating role of overall intelligence, fluid intelligence, language abilities, quantitative reasoning, and academic achievement on the association between being born at extremely low birth weight and socioeconomic outcomes at age 29-36. The final study examines the moderating role of childhood cognition on the association between postnatal psychosocial adversity and personal income attainment at age 30 in extremely low birth weight survivors. Overall, this body of work suggests that childhood cognitive abilities are an important contributor to adult outcomes in preterm survivors.