Working Paper: NBER ID: w12056
Authors: Howard Bodenhorn; Susan Averett; Bob Margo; Carolyn Moehling; John Murray; Greg Price
Abstract: Families are the core social institution and a growing body of research documents the costs of single parenthood for children in the twentieth century. This study documents racial differences in the incidence and costs of single parenthood in the mid-nineteenth century. Data from the urban South reveal two notable consequences of single parenthood. First, white children residing with single mothers left school earlier than children residing with two parents. Black children in single mother homes started school later and left school earlier. Single motherhood is therefore associated with less lifetime schooling for both races, but the consequences of living in a nontraditional home was larger for blacks. Second, single motherhood was associated with an increased incidence of labor force participation for white youth, but not for blacks. Single parenthood imposed costs, in terms of foregone human capital formation, on children in the mid-nineteenth century, but the consequences of single motherhood were mitigated by social norms toward childhood education.
Keywords: Single Parenthood; Childhood Outcomes; Mid-Nineteenth Century; Urban South; Racial Differences
JEL Codes: I2; J1; N3
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| single motherhood (J12) | reduced educational attainment for white children (I24) |
| single motherhood (J12) | earlier school leaving for white children (I21) |
| single motherhood (J12) | later school starting for black children (J79) |
| single motherhood (J12) | earlier school leaving for black children (I21) |
| single motherhood (J12) | less lifetime schooling for both races (J79) |
| single motherhood (J12) | increased labor force participation for white youth (J21) |
| single motherhood (J12) | no increase in labor force participation for black youth (J79) |