Working Paper: CEPR ID: DP17255
Authors: Sonia Bhalotra; Atheendar Venkataramani; Selma Walther
Abstract: We investigate women’s fertility, labor and marriage market responses to large declines inchild mortality. We find delayed childbearing, with lower intensive and extensive margin fertility,a decline in the chances of ever having married, increased labor force participation and animprovement in occupational status. This constitutes the first evidence that improvements inchild survival allow women to start fertility later and invest more in the labor market. Wepresent a new theory of fertility that incorporates dynamic choices and reconciles our findingswith existing models of behavior.
Keywords: womens labor force participation; fertility timing; childlessness; child mortality; medical innovation
JEL Codes: J13; I18
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| introduction of sulfa drugs in 1937 (B24) | pneumonia mortality decline (I14) |
| pneumonia mortality decline (I14) | fertility rates decrease (J13) |
| pneumonia mortality decline (I14) | probability of transitioning to motherhood decline (J19) |
| pneumonia mortality decline (I14) | probability of childlessness increase (J13) |
| child mortality decline (J13) | women's labor force participation increase (J21) |
| child mortality decline (J13) | occupational scores increase (J24) |
| child mortality decline (J13) | chances of ever being married decline (J12) |