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Sibling composition and child educational attainment: Evidence from native Amazonians in Bolivia

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  • Zeng, Wu
  • Undurraga, Eduardo A.
  • Eisenberg, Dan T.A.
  • Rubio-Jovel, Karla
  • Reyes-García, Victoria
  • Godoy, Ricardo

Abstract

Evidence from industrial nations suggests that sibling composition is associated with children's educational attainment, particularly if parents face resource constraints. If sibling composition is associated with educational attainment, then those associations should be stronger in poor societies of developing nations. We use data from a pre-industrial society of native Amazonians in Bolivia and found that school-age (5–16) girls or boys with an additional older sibling, particularly an older brother, were less likely to enroll in school and had fewer years of completed schooling. Because older siblings affected the school attainment of younger siblings, older siblings lowered a child's academic skills. Unlike their peers in rich households, younger sisters in poor households were less likely to enroll in school if they had an older sibling. The results lend cross-cultural support to the hypothesis that resource constraint is associated with children's human capital accumulation.

Suggested Citation

  • Zeng, Wu & Undurraga, Eduardo A. & Eisenberg, Dan T.A. & Rubio-Jovel, Karla & Reyes-García, Victoria & Godoy, Ricardo, 2012. "Sibling composition and child educational attainment: Evidence from native Amazonians in Bolivia," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 31(6), pages 1017-1027.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecoedu:v:31:y:2012:i:6:p:1017-1027
    DOI: 10.1016/j.econedurev.2012.07.011
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    Cited by:

    1. Bauchet, Jonathan & Undurraga, Eduardo A. & Reyes-García, Victoria & Behrman, Jere R. & Godoy, Ricardo A., 2018. "Conditional cash transfers for primary education: Which children are left out?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 105(C), pages 1-12.
    2. Heather Congdon Fors & Annika Lindskog, 2023. "Within‐family inequalities in human capital accumulation in India," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(1), pages 3-28, February.
    3. Zeng, Wu & Undurraga, Eduardo A. & Nyberg, Colleen & Eisenberg, Dan T.A. & Parida, Sabita & Zycherman, Ariela & Magvanjav, Oyunbileg & Reyes-García, Victoria & Tanner, Susan & Godoy, Ricardo, 2013. "Sibling composition during childhood and adult blood pressure among native Amazonians in Bolivia," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 11(3), pages 391-400.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Economic development; Resource allocation; Human capital;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education

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