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Estimating the Effects of Friendship Networks on Health Behaviors of Adolescents

Author

Listed:
  • Fletcher, J
  • Ross, S

Abstract

Researchers typically examine peer effects by defining the peer group broadly (all classmates, schoolmates, neighbors) because of the lack of friendship information in many data sources as well as to enable the use of plausibly exogenous variation in peer group composition across cohorts in the same school. This paper estimates the effects of friend’s health behaviors on own health behaviors for adolescents. A causal effect of friend’s health behaviors is identified by comparing similar individuals who have the same friendship opportunities because they attend the same school and make the same friendship choices, under the assumption that the friendship choice reveals information about an individual’s unobservables. We combine this identification strategy with a cross-cohort, within school design so that the model is identified based on across grade differences in the clustering of health behaviors within specific friendship options. This strategy allows us to separate the effect of friends behavior on own behavior from the effect of friends observables attributes on behavior, a key aspect of the reflection problem. We use a partial equilibrium model of friendship formation in order to derive the conditions under which our identification strategy will provide consistent estimates, and the key assumption required for our strategy to be feasible is supported by the empirical patterns of across cohort variation that we observe in our data. Our results suggest that friendship network effects are important in determining adolescent tobacco and alcohol use, but are over-estimated in specifications that do not fully take into account the endogeneity of friendship selection by 15-25%.

Suggested Citation

  • Fletcher, J & Ross, S, 2011. "Estimating the Effects of Friendship Networks on Health Behaviors of Adolescents," Health, Econometrics and Data Group (HEDG) Working Papers 11/13, HEDG, c/o Department of Economics, University of York.
  • Handle: RePEc:yor:hectdg:11/13
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    Cited by:

    1. Fletcher, Jason M. & Ross, Stephen L. & Zhang, Yuxiu, 2020. "The consequences of friendships: Evidence on the effect of social relationships in school on academic achievement," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 116(C).
    2. Fabio Landini & Natalia Montinari & Paolo Pin & Marco Piovesan, 2014. "Friendship Network in the Classroom: Parents Bias and Peer Effects," Discussion Papers 14-06, University of Copenhagen. Department of Economics.
    3. Stephen Billings & David Deming & Stephen L. Ross, 2016. "Partners in Crime: Schools, Neighborhoods and the Formation of Criminal Networks," Working Papers 2016-006, Human Capital and Economic Opportunity Working Group.
    4. Wang, Muwen, 2023. "Opposite-gender friendships and learning performance of students: Evidence from China," International Journal of Educational Development, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    5. Landini, Fabio & Montinari, Natalia & Pin, Paolo & Piovesan, Marco, 2016. "Friendship network in the classroom: Parents bias on peer effects," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 56-73.
    6. Aliaksandr Amialchuk & Onur Sapci, 2022. "The long‐term health effects of initiating smoking in adolescence: Evidence from a national longitudinal survey," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(4), pages 597-613, April.
    7. Bet Caeyers & Marcel Fafchamps, 2016. "Exclusion Bias in the Estimation of Peer Effects," NBER Working Papers 22565, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    8. Nirav Mehta & Ralph Stinebrickner & Todd Stinebrickner, 2019. "Time‐Use And Academic Peer Effects In College," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 57(1), pages 162-171, January.
    9. Topa, Giorgio & Zenou, Yves, 2015. "Neighborhood and Network Effects," Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, in: Gilles Duranton & J. V. Henderson & William C. Strange (ed.), Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, edition 1, volume 5, chapter 0, pages 561-624, Elsevier.
    10. Jason M. Fletcher & Stephen L. Ross & Yuxiu Zhang, 2013. "The Determinants and Consequences of Friendship Composition," Working papers 2013-31, University of Connecticut, Department of Economics.
    11. Lelys Dinarte-Diaz, 2024. "Peer Effects on Violence: Experimental Evidence from El Salvador," CESifo Working Paper Series 10975, CESifo.
    12. Chen, Xi & Sahn, David E. & Zhang, Xiaobo, 2018. "Social Interactions and Stigmatized Behavior: "Donating" Blood Plasma in Rural China," IZA Discussion Papers 11413, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    13. Bet Caeyers, 2014. "Exclusion bias in empirical social interaction models: causes, consequences and solutions," CSAE Working Paper Series 2014-05, Centre for the Study of African Economies, University of Oxford.
    14. Dinarte Diaz, Lelys, 2024. "Peer Effects on Violence: Experimental Evidence from El Salvador," IZA Discussion Papers 16830, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    15. repec:oxf:wpaper:wps/2014-05 is not listed on IDEAS

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D85 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Network Formation
    • I19 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Other
    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth

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