Working Paper: NBER ID: w11522
Authors: Anna Aizer; Sara McLanahan
Abstract: Increasing the probability of paying child support, in addition to increasing resources available for investment in children, may also alter the incentives faced by men to have children out of wedlock. We find that strengthening child support enforcement leads men to have fewer out-of-wedlock births and among those who do become fathers, to do so with more educated women and those with a higher propensity to invest in children. Thus, policies that compel men to pay child support may affect child outcomes through two pathways: an increase in financial resources and a birth selection process.
Keywords: Child Support Enforcement; Fertility; Parental Investment; Child Wellbeing
JEL Codes: J12; J13; I38
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Stricter child support enforcement (K36) | Fewer out-of-wedlock births (J12) |
| Stricter child support enforcement (K36) | Higher likelihood of single mothers initiating prenatal care early (J12) |
| Stricter child support enforcement (K36) | More prenatal visits (I19) |
| Stricter child support enforcement (K36) | Maternal education and investment in children (I24) |
| Stricter child support enforcement (K36) | Positive selection on maternal quality (J16) |