Working Paper: NBER ID: w22988
Authors: Robert A. Moffitt; David C. Ribar
Abstract: A long literature in economics studies differential allocations of resources to children within the family. In a study of approximately 1,600 very disadvantaged households with children in three cities in the U.S. from 1999 to 2005, significant differences in levels of food allocation, as measured by an indicator of food “insecurity,” are found across children of different ages and genders. Using answers to unique survey questions for a specific child in the household, food insecurity levels are much higher among older children than among younger ones, and to be sometimes higher among older boys than among older girls. Allocations are strongly correlated with the dietary needs of the child as well as with household structure and the level of family organization. However, the differences appear only in the poorest households with the lowest levels of money income and household resources in general, and most differences disappear in significance or are greatly reduced in magnitude when resources rise to only modest levels.
Keywords: food security; children; age differences; gender differences; low-income households
JEL Codes: I1; I3; J1
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| age (J14) | food insecurity (I32) |
| gender (J16) | food insecurity (I32) |
| household resources (D13) | food insecurity (I32) |
| age and gender (J21) | food insecurity (I32) |