Working Paper: NBER ID: w18216
Authors: Jason M. Fletcher
Abstract: This paper uses recently released data from a national longitudinal sample to present new evidence of the longer term effects of adolescent depression on labor market outcomes. Results suggest reductions in labor force attachment of approximately 5 percentage points and earnings reductions of approximately 20% for individuals with depressive symptoms as an adolescent. These effects are only partially reduced when controlling for channels operating through educational attainment, adult depressive symptoms, or co-occurring illnesses. Further, the unique structure of the data allows for high-school fixed effects as well as suggestive evidence using sibling comparisons, which allows controls for potentially important unobserved heterogeneity. Overall, the results suggest that the links between adolescent depression and labor market outcomes are quite robust and important in magnitude, suggesting that there may be substantial labor market returns to further investments in treatment opportunities during adolescence.
Keywords: adolescent depression; labor market outcomes; employment; earnings
JEL Codes: I1; I12; J22; J24
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| adolescent depression (J13) | reduction in labor force attachment (J22) |
| adolescent depression (J13) | decrease in earnings (J31) |
| reduction in labor force attachment (J22) | decrease in earnings (J31) |