Working Paper: NBER ID: w16133
Authors: Michael R. Haines
Abstract: This paper deals with the issue of using infant and childhood mortality as an indicator of inequality. The case is that of the United States in the 20th century. Using microdata from the 1900 and 1910 Integrated Public Use Microsamples (IPUMS), published data from the Birth Registration Area in the 1920s, results from a number of surveys, and the Linked Birth & Infant Death Files from the National Center for Health Statistics for 1991, infant and child mortality can be related to such other variables as occupation of father or mother, education of father or mother, family income, race, ethnicity, and residence. The evidence shows that, although there have been large absolute reductions in the level of infant and child mortality rates and also a reduction in the absolute levels of differences across socioeconomic groups, relative inequality has not diminished over the 20th century.
Keywords: inequality; infant mortality; childhood mortality; socioeconomic status
JEL Codes: I10; N12
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| lower parental education (I24) | higher rates of infant and childhood mortality (J13) |
| lower parental income (I24) | higher rates of infant and childhood mortality (J13) |
| higher family income (D19) | lower risk of child death (J13) |
| higher breastfeeding rates (J13) | lower infant mortality rates (J13) |
| socioeconomic status (P36) | infant and childhood mortality (J13) |