Working Paper: NBER ID: w31992
Authors: Daniel S. Grossman; Umair Khalil; Laura Panza
Abstract: We study the intergenerational health consequences of forced displacement and incarceration of Japanese Americans in the US during WWII. Incarcerated mothers had babies who were less healthy at birth. This decrease in health represents a shift in the entire birthweight distribution due to exposure to prison camps. Imprisoned individuals were less likely to have children with fathers of other ethnic groups but were more likely to receive prenatal care, invest in education, and participate in the labor market. To the extent human capital effects mitigate the full negative effects of incarceration on intergenerational health, our results are a lower bound.
Keywords: forced displacement; Japanese American incarceration; intergenerational health effects
JEL Codes: I12; I14; I18; N32
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Incarceration (K14) | Nutritional Deprivation and Health Deficiencies (I32) |
| Incarceration (K14) | Behavioral Improvements (Female Educational Attainment and Health Behaviors) (I24) |
| Incarceration (K14) | Long-term Impacts on Interpersonal Relationships (J12) |
| Incarceration (K14) | Shift in Birthweight Distribution (J11) |
| Incarceration (K14) | Birth Weight (J13) |
| Incarceration (K14) | Low Birth Weight (LBW) Babies (J13) |
| Incarceration (K14) | Effects across Different Maternal Birth Cohorts (J19) |