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Adult Outcomes for Children of Teenage Mothers

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  • Francesconi, Marco

    (University of Essex)

Abstract

Using data from the British Household Panel Survey, this study examines the relationship between several outcomes in early adulthood (e.g., education, inactivity, earnings, and health) and being born to a teenage mother. Besides standard cross-sectional multivariate regression estimates, we also present evidence from nonparametric estimates and from estimates that account for unmeasured family background heterogeneity by comparing siblings born to the same mother who timed their births at different ages. Regardless of the econometric technique, being born to a teenage mother is usually associated with worse outcomes. An important channel of transmission of this adverse effect is childhood family structure, which plays a more powerful role than childhood family poverty. Albeit smaller, some of the detrimental effects are also found for children of mothers who gave birth in their early twenties.

Suggested Citation

  • Francesconi, Marco, 2007. "Adult Outcomes for Children of Teenage Mothers," IZA Discussion Papers 2778, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp2778
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    teenage pregnancy; endowment heterogeneity; intergenerational processes; identification issues; sibling estimators;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C23 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Models with Panel Data; Spatio-temporal Models
    • I31 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - General Welfare, Well-Being
    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth

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