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Understanding the Effects of Sibling Composition on Child

Author

Listed:
  • Gerald Makepeace

    (Cardiff)

  • Sarmistha Pal

    (Cardiff)

Abstract

This paper argues that spacing between consecutive births is an important aspect of competition among siblings for survival. Since parents simultaneously choose their desired values of birth spacing and the amount of time and other resources invested in children (which in turn affect child mortality), we use a maximum likelihood method to model birth spacing and child mortality as correlated processes while also allowing for family specific unobserved heterogeneity. Our estimates show that the chances of survival in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal increase with an increase in birth interval (prior and/or posterior) and decrease with the birth of a twin.

Suggested Citation

  • Gerald Makepeace & Sarmistha Pal, 2004. "Understanding the Effects of Sibling Composition on Child," Labor and Demography 0402004, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    • Handle: RePEc:wpa:wuwpla:0402004
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    File URL: https://econwpa.ub.uni-muenchen.de/econ-wp/lab/papers/0402/0402004.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Claudio Fuentealba & Claudia Sanhueza Riveros, 2007. "Tamaño de la Familia, Orden de Nacimiento, Espacio Temporal entre Hermanos y Logros: Evidencia para Chile," Working Papers wp247, University of Chile, Department of Economics.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Sibling competition; Birth spacing; Child mortality; Gender differences; Unobserved heterogeneity; Endogeneity bias;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D13 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Household Production and Intrahouse Allocation
    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration

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