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Infant health production functions: what a difference the data make

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  • Nancy E. Reichman
  • Hope Corman
  • Kelly Noonan
  • Dhaval Dave

Abstract

We examine the extent to which infant health production functions are sensitive to model specification and measurement error. We focus on the importance of typically unobserved but theoretically important variables (typically unobserved variables, TUVs), other non‐standard covariates (NSCs), input reporting, and characterization of infant health. The TUVs represent wantedness, taste for risky behavior, and maternal health endowment. The NSCs include father characteristics. We estimate the effects of prenatal drug use, prenatal cigarette smoking, and first trimester prenatal care on birth weight, low birth weight, and a measure of abnormal infant health conditions. We compare estimates using self‐reported inputs versus input measures that combine information from medical records and self‐reports. We find that TUVs and NSCs are significantly associated with both inputs and outcomes, but that excluding them from infant health production functions does not appreciably affect the input estimates. However, using self‐reported inputs leads to overestimated effects of inputs, particularly prenatal care, on outcomes, and using a direct measure of infant health does not always yield input estimates similar to those when using birth weight outcomes. The findings have implications for research, data collection, and public health policy. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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  • Nancy E. Reichman & Hope Corman & Kelly Noonan & Dhaval Dave, 2009. "Infant health production functions: what a difference the data make," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 18(7), pages 761-782, July.
  • Handle: RePEc:wly:hlthec:v:18:y:2009:i:7:p:761-782
    DOI: 10.1002/hec.1402
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    1. Bertoli, Paola & Grembi, Veronica, 2021. "Territorial differences in access to prenatal care and health at birth," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 125(8), pages 1092-1099.
    2. Burdette, Amy M. & Weeks, Janet & Hill, Terrence D. & Eberstein, Isaac W., 2012. "Maternal religious attendance and low birth weight," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 74(12), pages 1961-1967.
    3. Ana I. Balsa & Patricia Triunfo, 2012. "The Effectiveness of Prenatal Care in a Low Income Population: A Panel Data Approach," Documentos de Trabajo/Working Papers 1204, Facultad de Ciencias Empresariales y Economia. Universidad de Montevideo..
    4. Ji Yan, 2013. "Prenatal Smoking Cessation and Infant Health: Evidence from Sibling Births," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 80(2), pages 299-323, October.
    5. Teitler, Julien O. & Hutto, Nathan & Reichman, Nancy E., 2012. "Birthweight of children of immigrants by maternal duration of residence in the United States," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 75(3), pages 459-468.
    6. Hope Corman & Dhaval Dave & Nancy E. Reichman, 2018. "Evolution of the Infant Health Production Function," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 85(1), pages 6-47, July.
    7. Mark E. Mcgovern, 2013. "Still Unequal at Birth: Birth Weight,Socio-economic Status and Outcomes at Age 9," The Economic and Social Review, Economic and Social Studies, vol. 44(1), pages 53-84.
    8. Liu, Tsai-Ching & Chen, Bradley & Chan, Yun-Shan & Chen, Chin-Shyan, 2015. "Does prenatal care benefit maternal health? A study of post-partum maternal care use," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 119(10), pages 1382-1389.
    9. Dills, Angela K. & Grecu, Anca M., 2017. "Effects of state contraceptive insurance mandates," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 24(C), pages 30-42.
    10. Hope Corman & Kelly Noonan & Nancy Reichman & Ofira Schwartz-Soicher, 2011. "Life Shocks and Crime: A Test of the “Turning Point” Hypothesis," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 48(3), pages 1177-1202, August.
    11. Alzúa, María Laura & Katzkowicz, Noemí, 2021. "Pay for performance for prenatal care and newborn health: Evidence from a developing country," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 141(C).
    12. José Andrade & Joan Gil, 2023. "Maternal Employment and Child Malnutrition in Ecuador," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(13), pages 1-25, June.
    13. Angela R. Fertig, 2010. "Selection and the effect of prenatal smoking," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 19(2), pages 209-226, February.
    14. José Carlos Andrade & Joan Gil, 2022. "Maternal employment and childhood malnutrition in Ecuador," UB School of Economics Working Papers 2022/416, University of Barcelona School of Economics.
    15. Wüst, Miriam, 2010. "The effect of cigarette and alcohol consumption on birth outcomes," Working Papers 10-5, University of Aarhus, Aarhus School of Business, Department of Economics.
    16. Nancy Reichman & Hope Corman & Kelly Noonan & Ofira Schwartz-Soicher, 2010. "Effects of prenatal care on maternal postpartum behaviors," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 8(2), pages 171-197, June.
    17. Ji Yan, 2015. "The Earlier and the More, the Healthier? The Effects of Prenatal Care Utilization on Maternal Health and Health Behaviors," Working Papers 15-08, Department of Economics, Appalachian State University.
    18. Chiara Ionio & Eleonora Mascheroni & Gianluca Lista & Caterina Colombo & Giulia Ciuffo & Marta Landoni & Irene Daniele & Merideth Gattis, 2022. "Monochorionic Twins and the Early Mother-Infant Relationship: An Exploratory Observational Study of Mother-Infant Interaction in the Post-Partum Period," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(5), pages 1-12, February.
    19. Ji Yan, 2017. "The Effects of Prenatal Care Utilization on Maternal Health and Health Behaviors," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 26(8), pages 1001-1018, August.
    20. Ana Inés Balsa & Patricia Triunfo, 2012. "¿Son los cuidados prenatales efectivos? Un enfoque con datos individuales de panel," Documentos de Trabajo (working papers) 0612, Department of Economics - dECON.
    21. Buckles, Kasey, 2017. "Maternal Socio-Economic Status and the Well-Being of the Next Generation(s)," IZA Discussion Papers 10714, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    22. Corman, Hope & Noonan, Kelly & Reichman, Nancy E., 2014. "Effects of infant health on family food insecurity: Evidence from two U.S. birth cohort studies," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 18-25.

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