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Effects of Child Health on Parents' Relationship Status

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  • Nancy E. Reichman
  • Hope Corman
  • Kelly Noonan

Abstract

We use data from the national longitudinal Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study to estimate the effect of poor child health on father presence. We look at whether parents live in the same household 12-18 months after the child's birth and also at how their relationships changed along a continuum (married, cohabiting, romantically involved, friends, or not involved) during the same period. We find that having an infant in poor health reduces the likelihood that parents will live together and increases the likelihood that they will become less committed to their relationship, particularly among parents with low socioeconomic status.

Suggested Citation

  • Nancy E. Reichman & Hope Corman & Kelly Noonan, 2003. "Effects of Child Health on Parents' Relationship Status," NBER Working Papers 9610, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:9610
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    Cited by:

    1. Kouki, Amairisa, 2023. "Beyond the “Comforts” of work from home: Child health and the female wage penalty," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    2. Ebonya Washington, 2006. "Female Socialization: How Daughters Affect Their Legislator Fathers' Voting on Women's Issues," NBER Working Papers 11924, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Lukáš Lafférs & Bernhard Schmidpeter, 2021. "Early child development and parents' labor supply," Journal of Applied Econometrics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 36(2), pages 190-208, March.
    4. Nancy E. Reichman & Hope Corman & Kelly Noonan, 2004. "Effects of Child Health on Sources of Public Support," NBER Working Papers 10762, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Lefebvre, Pierre, 2006. "Le gradient santé / revenu familial des nouveau-nés québécois de 1998 après quatre ans : faible ou inexistant?," L'Actualité Economique, Société Canadienne de Science Economique, vol. 82(4), pages 523-595, décembre.
    6. Kelly Noonan & Nancy E. Reichman & Hope Corman, 2005. "New Fathers' Labor Supply: Does Child Health Matter?," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 86(s1), pages 1399-1417, December.
    7. Nancy E. Reichman & Hope Corman & Kelly Noonan, 2006. "Effects of Child Health on Sources of Public Support," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 73(1), pages 136-156, July.
    8. Reagan A. Baughman, 2017. "The impact of child support on child health," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 15(1), pages 69-91, March.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • J12 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Marriage; Marital Dissolution; Family Structure
    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior

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