Child Health and Neighborhood Conditions: Results from a Randomized Housing Voucher ExperimentFortson, Jane Garrison,; Sanbonmatsu, Lisa.
2012 Journal of Human Resources
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Using data from the Moving to Opportunity randomized housing voucher experiment, we estimate the direct effects of housing and neighborhood quality on child health. We show that, five years after random assignment, housing mobility has little impact on overall health status, asthma, injuries, and body mass index. The few effects that we observe imply that being offered a voucher through the program might worsen some aspects of child health, despite significant improvements in housing quality, nutrition and exercise, and neighborhood safety. Our results are inconsistent with the hypothesis that neighborhood conditions explain much of the widely-cited income gradient in child health.
The Long-Term Economic Impact of In Utero and Postnatal Exposure to MalariaBarreca, Alan.
2012 Journal of Human Resources
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I use an instrumental-variables identification strategy and historical data from the United States to estimate the long-term economic impact of in utero and postnatal exposure to malaria. My research design matches adults in the 1960 Decennial Census to the malaria death rate in their respective state and year of birth. To address potential omitted-variables bias and measurement-error bias, I use variation in "malaria-ideal" temperatures to instrument for malaria exposure. My estimates indicate that in utero and postnatal exposure to malaria led to considerably lower levels of educational attainment and higher rates of poverty later in life.
School Desegregation and Educational Attainment for BlacksReber, Sarah J.
2012 Journal of Human Resources
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This paper assesses the effects of school desegregation on its intended beneficiaries: black students. In Louisiana, substantial reductions in segregation between 1965 and 1970 were accompanied by large increases in per-pupil funding, which allowed funding in integrated schools to be "leveled up" to the level previously experienced only in white schools. Desegregation also brought increased exposure of blacks to whites. Analysis of new data on levels of segregation, resources and educational attainment from 1960-75 suggests that the increase in funding associated with desegregation improved educational attainment for blacks. A 42 percent increase in funding led to a 15 percent increase in high school graduation rates, and the estimated present value of the additional education exceeded the additional cost.
The Persistence of Teacher-Induced LearningJacob, Brian A.; Lefgren, Lars.; Sims, David Patrick,
2012 Journal of Human Resources
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This paper constructs a statistical model of learning that suggests a systematic way of measuring the persistence of treatment effects in education. This method is straightforward to implement, allows for comparisons across educational treatments, and can be related to intuitive benchmarks. We demonstrate the methodology using student-teacher linked administrative data for North Carolina to examine the persistence of teacher quality. We find that teacher-induced learning has low persistence, with three-quarters or more fading out within one year. Other measures of teacher quality produce similar or lower persistence estimates.
Are College Graduates More Responsive to Distant Labor Market Opportunities?Wozniak, Abigail.
2012 Journal of Human Resources
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Are highly educated workers better at locating in areas with high labor demand? To answer this question, I use three decades of U.S. Census data to estimate a McFadden-style model of residential location choice. I test for education differentials in the likelihood that young workers reside in states experiencing positive labor demand shocks at the time these workers entered the labor market. I find effects of changes in state labor demand on college graduate location choice that are several times greater than for high school graduates. Nevertheless, medium-run wage effects of entry labor market conditions for college graduates equal or exceed those of less-educated workers.
The Supply of Birth Control Methods, Education, and Fertility: Evidence from RomaniaPop-Eleches, Cristian.
2012 Journal of Human Resources
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This paper investigates the effect of the supply of birth control methods on fertility behavior by examining Romania's 23-year period of pronatalist policies. Following the lifting of the restrictions in 1989 the immediate decrease in fertility was 30 percent. Women who spent most of their reproductive years under the restrictive regime experienced increases in life-cycle fertility of about 0.5 children. Less-educated women had bigger increases infertility after policy implementation and larger fertility decreases following the lifting of restrictions. These findings suggest that access to abortion and birth control are significant determinants of fertility levels, particularly for less-educated women.
Is Marriage Always Good for Children?: Evidence from Families Affected by IncarcerationFinlay, Keith.; Neumark, David.
2012 Journal of Human Resources
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Never-married motherhood is associated with worse educational outcomes for children. But this association may reflect other factors that also determine family structure, rather than causal effects. We use incarceration rates for men as instrumental variables in estimating the effect of never-married motherhood on the high school dropout rate of black and Hispanic children. We find that unobserved factors drive the negative relationship between never-married motherhood and child education, at least for children of women whose marriage decisions are affected by incarceration of men. For Hispanics we find evidence that these children actually may be better off living with a never-married mother.