Working Paper: NBER ID: w15814
Authors: Ofer Malamud; Cristian Popelaches
Abstract: This paper uses a regression discontinuity design to estimate the effect of home computers on child and adolescent outcomes. We collected survey data from households who participated in a unique government program in Romania which allocated vouchers for the purchase of a home computer to low-income children based on a simple ranking of family income. We show that children in households who received a voucher were substantially more likely to own and use a computer than their counterparts who did not receive a voucher. Our main results indicate that that home computer use has both positive and negative effects on the development of human capital. Children who won a voucher had significantly lower school grades in Math, English and Romanian but significantly higher scores in a test of computer skills and in self-reported measures of computer fluency. There is also evidence that winning a voucher increased cognitive ability, as measured by Raven's Progressive Matrices. We do not find much evidence for an effect on non-cognitive outcomes. Finally, the presence of parental rules regarding computer use and homework appear to mitigate the effects of computer ownership, suggesting that parental monitoring and supervision may be important mediating factors.
Keywords: home computer; human capital; child outcomes; Romania; regression discontinuity
JEL Codes: I21; J24
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Winning a voucher (D44) | Owning a home computer (R21) |
| Owning a home computer (R21) | Increased computer usage (C89) |
| Increased computer usage (C89) | Lower academic performance (D29) |
| Owning a home computer (R21) | Improved computer skills (C89) |
| Parental rules regarding computer use (K24) | Mitigation of negative effects (Q54) |