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The health returns to schooling—what can we learn from twins?

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  • Petter Lundborg

Abstract

This paper estimates the health returns to schooling, using a twin design. For this purpose, I use data on monozygotic twins from the Midlife in the United States survey. The results suggest that completing high school improves health, as measured through self-reported health, chronic conditions, and exercise behavior, but that additional schooling does not lead to additional health gains. Controlling for certain early life factors that may vary within twin pairs does not alter the main conclusions of this paper. Copyright Springer-Verlag 2013

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  • Petter Lundborg, 2013. "The health returns to schooling—what can we learn from twins?," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 26(2), pages 673-701, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:jopoec:v:26:y:2013:i:2:p:673-701
    DOI: 10.1007/s00148-012-0429-5
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Health production; Education; Schooling; Twins; Returns to education; Ability bias; I12; I11; J14;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • I11 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Analysis of Health Care Markets
    • J14 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of the Elderly; Economics of the Handicapped; Non-Labor Market Discrimination

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