IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/ore/uoecwp/2003-35.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Mortality, Fertility and Child Labor

Author

Listed:
  • Shankha Chakraborty

    (University of Oregon Economics Department)

  • Mausumi Das

    (Delhi School of Economics Economics Department)

Abstract

We discuss how child labor problems may persist in developing countries when adult mortality risks are endogenous. Children provide current consumption through child labor and future consumption via an informal social security arrangement. Poorer parents, unable to invest much in their health, face greater mortality risks and are inclined to send their children to work instead of investing in their human capital. Endogenous fertility decisions exacerbate the problem as parents substitute toward quantity investment in children.

Suggested Citation

  • Shankha Chakraborty & Mausumi Das, 2003. "Mortality, Fertility and Child Labor," University of Oregon Economics Department Working Papers 2003-35, University of Oregon Economics Department, revised 01 Dec 2003.
    • Handle: RePEc:ore:uoecwp:2003-35
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://economics.uoregon.edu/papers/UO-2003-35_Chakraborty_Child_Labor.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Kaushik Basu, 1999. "Child Labor: Cause, Consequence, and Cure, with Remarks on International Labor Standards," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 37(3), pages 1083-1119, September.
    2. Ranjan, Priya, 2001. "Credit constraints and the phenomenon of child labor," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 64(1), pages 81-102, February.
    3. Jean-Marie Baland & James A. Robinson, 2000. "Is Child Labor Inefficient?," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 108(4), pages 663-679, August.
    4. Moshe Hazan & Binyamin Berdugo, 2002. "Child Labour, Fertility, and Economic Growth," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 112(482), pages 810-828, October.
    5. Samwick, Andrew A., 1998. "Discount rate heterogeneity and social security reform," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 57(1), pages 117-146, October.
    6. Kaushik Basu, 1999. "International Labor Standards and Child Labor," Challenge, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 42(5), pages 80-93, September.
    7. Lawrance, Emily C, 1991. "Poverty and the Rate of Time Preference: Evidence from Panel Data," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 99(1), pages 54-77, February.
    8. Emerson, Patrick M & Souza, Andre Portela, 2003. "Is There a Child Labor Trap? Intergenerational Persistence of Child Labor in Brazil," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 51(2), pages 375-398, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Kitaura, Koji, 2009. "Child labor, education aid, and economic growth," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 31(4), pages 614-620, December.
    2. Wang, Ruixin, 2015. "Essays on development economics and public economics," Other publications TiSEM e1779514-5b71-4726-925b-2, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    3. Jayanta Sarkar & Dipanwita Sarkar, 2016. "Why Does Child Labor Persist With Declining Poverty?," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 54(1), pages 139-158, January.
    4. Brezis, Elise S. & Ferreira, Rodolphe Dos Santos, 2016. "Endogenous Fertility With A Sibship Size Effect," Macroeconomic Dynamics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 20(8), pages 2046-2066, December.
    5. Hung-Ju Chen, 2010. "Life expectancy, fertility, and educational investment," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 23(1), pages 37-56, January.
    6. Akira Yakita, 2020. "Fertility decisions of families in an intergenerational exchange model," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(4), pages 1447-1462, November.
    7. Carmen Camacho & Fernanda Estevan, 2023. "Intergeneration Human Capital Transmission and Poverty Traps," PSE Working Papers halshs-04075431, HAL.
    8. Elise S. Brezis & Rodolphe Dos Santos Ferreira, 2012. "Endogenous Fertility and Intergenerational Transfers: The Significance of the Sibship Size Effect," Working Papers 2012-14, Bar-Ilan University, Department of Economics.
    9. Christopher GRIGORIOU & Grégoire ROTA-GRAZIOSI, 2005. "Why do Education Expenditures Fail to Reduce Child Labor? Looking for an Optimal Composition of the Social Expenditures," Working Papers 200517, CERDI.
    10. Han Phoumin, 2008. "Human Capital and Hours Worked of Children in Cambodia: Empirical Evidence for Policy Implications," Asian Economic Journal, East Asian Economic Association, vol. 22(1), pages 25-46, March.
    11. Fioroni, Tamara, 2014. "Health and Child Labour," MPRA Paper 58789, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. Kitaura, Koji & Ogawa, Hikaru & Yakita, Sayaka, 2011. "Multiple equilibria arising from donor’s aid policy in economic development," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 33(4), pages 819-827.
    13. Jocelyn E. Finlay, 2006. "Endogenous Longevity and Economic Growth," PGDA Working Papers 0706, Program on the Global Demography of Aging.
    14. Haruyama, Tetsugen & Park, Hyun, 2017. "A simple dynastic economy with parental time investment in children’s patience," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 235-247.
    15. Aso, Hiroki, 2020. "Endogenous lifetime, intergenerational mobility and economic development," MPRA Paper 99582, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    16. Bruhns, Ramona, 2006. "The Long-run Effects of HIV/AIDS in Kenya," MPRA Paper 952, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    17. Veronica Amarante & Rodrigo Arim & Gioia de Melo & Andrea Vigorito, 2010. "Family Allowances and Child School Attendance: An ex-ante Evaluation of Alternative Schemes in Uruguay," Working Papers PMMA 2010-07, PEP-PMMA.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Eric V. Edmonds, 2005. "Does Child Labor Decline with Improving Economic Status?," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 40(1).
    2. Matthias Doepke & Fabrizio Zilibotti, 2005. "The Macroeconomics of Child Labor Regulation," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 95(5), pages 1492-1524, December.
    3. Jayanta Sarkar & Dipanwita Sarkar, 2016. "Why Does Child Labor Persist With Declining Poverty?," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 54(1), pages 139-158, January.
    4. Matthias Doepke, "undated". "Origins and Consequences of Child Labor Restrictions: A Macroeconomic Perspective," UCLA Economics Online Papers 413, UCLA Department of Economics.
    5. C. Simon Fan, 2004. "Relative wage, child labor, and human capital," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 56(4), pages 687-700, October.
    6. Simone D’Alessandro & Tamara Fioroni, 2016. "Child labour and inequality," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 14(1), pages 63-79, March.
    7. Matthias Doepke & Fabrizio Zilibotti, 2003. "Voting with Your Children: A Positive Analysis of Child Labor Laws," UCLA Economics Working Papers 828, UCLA Department of Economics.
    8. Eugenia Fotoniata & Thomas Moutos, 2013. "Product Quality, Informality, and Child Labor," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 17(2), pages 268-283, May.
    9. Shunsuke Sakamoto, 2006. "Parental Attitudes toward Children and Child Labor: Evidence from Rural India," Hi-Stat Discussion Paper Series d05-136, Institute of Economic Research, Hitotsubashi University.
    10. Kimhi, Ayal, 2007. "Does Land Reform In Transition Countries Increase Child Labor? Evidence From The Republic Of Georgia," Discussion Papers 7147, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Department of Agricultural Economics and Management.
    11. Eliana Cardoso & Andre Portela Souza, 2004. "The Impact of Cash Transfers on Child Labor and School Attendance in Brazil," Vanderbilt University Department of Economics Working Papers 0407, Vanderbilt University Department of Economics.
    12. Kathleen Beegle & Rajeev Dehejia & Roberta Gatti, 2003. "Child Labor, Crop Shocks, and Credit Constraints," NBER Working Papers 10088, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    13. Patrick M. Emerson & Vladimir Ponczek & André Portela Souza, 2017. "Child Labor and Learning," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 65(2), pages 265-296.
    14. Caroline Orset, 2008. "A Theory of Child Protection against Kidnapping," Cahiers de recherche 0816, CIRPEE.
    15. Fabre, Alice & Pallage, Stéphane, 2015. "Child labor, idiosyncratic shocks, and social policy," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 394-411.
    16. Carol Ann Rogers & Kenneth A. Swinnerton, 2008. "A theory of exploitative child labor," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 60(1), pages 20-41, January.
    17. Menon, Nidhiya & Rodgers, Yana van der Meulen, 2018. "Child labor and the minimum wage: Evidence from India," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 46(2), pages 480-494.
    18. Basu, Kaushik, 2003. "Policy Dilemmas for Controlling Child Labor," Working Papers 03-11, Cornell University, Center for Analytic Economics.
    19. Drusilla K. Brown & Alan V. Deardorff & Robert M. Stern, 2009. "The Effects of Multinational Production on Wages and Working Conditions in Developing Countries," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Globalization And International Trade Policies, chapter 17, pages 623-687, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    20. Partha Deb & Furio Rosati, 2002. "Determinants of Child Labor and School Attendance: The Role of Household Unobservables," Economics Working Paper Archive at Hunter College 02/9, Hunter College Department of Economics.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Fairness: child labor; fertility; mortality; education;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J2 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor
    • O1 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:ore:uoecwp:2003-35. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Bill Harbaugh (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/deuorus.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.