IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/reveho/v15y2017i2d10.1007_s11150-016-9350-0.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

School enrolment and mothers’ labor supply: evidence from a regression discontinuity approach

Author

Listed:
  • Henning Finseraas

    (Institute for Social Research)

  • Inés Hardoy

    (Institute for Social Research)

  • Pål Schøne

    (Institute for Social Research)

Abstract

We analyze the impact on maternal employment of a universal school reform in Norway which lowered the school starting age from seven to six. We use a regression discontinuity approach exploiting exogenous variation in the compulsory school enrollment rule caused by the reform. Our results reveal positive short-term effects on labor supply (approximately five percentage points) and on earnings (about 12600/1350 NOK/Euro). Subgroup analyses show that the positive effects are much stronger for mothers with low wage potential, a group of mothers that were less likely to use formal childcare prior to the reform. The positive effects for this subgroup of mothers suggest that expanding child-care can be an effective tool for increasing labor supply of mothers who previously had relatively low labor market earnings potential.

Suggested Citation

  • Henning Finseraas & Inés Hardoy & Pål Schøne, 2017. "School enrolment and mothers’ labor supply: evidence from a regression discontinuity approach," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 15(2), pages 621-638, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:reveho:v:15:y:2017:i:2:d:10.1007_s11150-016-9350-0
    DOI: 10.1007/s11150-016-9350-0
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s11150-016-9350-0
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s11150-016-9350-0?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Givord, Pauline & Marbot, Claire, 2015. "Does the cost of child care affect female labor market participation? An evaluation of a French reform of childcare subsidies," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 99-111.
    2. Berlinski, Samuel & Galiani, Sebastian, 2007. "The effect of a large expansion of pre-primary school facilities on preschool attendance and maternal employment," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 14(3), pages 665-680, June.
    3. David S. Lee & Thomas Lemieux, 2009. "Regression Discontinuity Designs In Economics," Working Papers 1118, Princeton University, Department of Economics, Industrial Relations Section..
    4. Bradley T. Heim, 2007. "The Incredible Shrinking Elasticities: Married Female Labor Supply, 1978–2002," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 42(4).
    5. Mike Brewer & Claire Crawford, 2010. "Starting school and leaving welfare: the impact of public education on lone parents' welfare receipt," IFS Working Papers W10/19, Institute for Fiscal Studies.
    6. Goux, Dominique & Maurin, Eric, 2010. "Public school availability for two-year olds and mothers' labour supply," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 17(6), pages 951-962, December.
    7. David S. Lee & Thomas Lemieux, 2010. "Regression Discontinuity Designs in Economics," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 48(2), pages 281-355, June.
    8. Sebastian Calonico & Matias D. Cattaneo & Rocio Titiunik, 2014. "Robust data-driven inference in the regression-discontinuity design," Stata Journal, StataCorp LP, vol. 14(4), pages 909-946, December.
    9. Jonah B. Gelbach, 2002. "Public Schooling for Young Children and Maternal Labor Supply," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 92(1), pages 307-322, March.
    10. Andrew Gelman & Guido Imbens, 2019. "Why High-Order Polynomials Should Not Be Used in Regression Discontinuity Designs," Journal of Business & Economic Statistics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 37(3), pages 447-456, July.
    11. Sebastian Calonico & Matias D. Cattaneo & Rocio Titiunik, 2014. "Robust Nonparametric Confidence Intervals for Regression‐Discontinuity Designs," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 82, pages 2295-2326, November.
    12. Bettendorf, Leon J.H. & Jongen, Egbert L.W. & Muller, Paul, 2015. "Childcare subsidies and labour supply — Evidence from a large Dutch reform," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 112-123.
    13. Drange, Nina & Havnes, Tarjei & Sandsør, Astrid M.J., 2016. "Kindergarten for all: Long run effects of a universal intervention," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 164-181.
    14. Tarjei Havnes & Magne Mogstad, 2011. "No Child Left Behind: Subsidized Child Care and Children's Long-Run Outcomes," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 3(2), pages 97-129, May.
    15. Samuel Berlinski & Sebastian Galiani & Patrick J. McEwan, 2011. "Preschool and Maternal Labor Market Outcomes: Evidence from a Regression Discontinuity Design," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 59(2), pages 313-344.
    16. Kelly Bedard & Elizabeth Dhuey, 2006. "The Persistence of Early Childhood Maturity: International Evidence of Long-Run Age Effects," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 121(4), pages 1437-1472.
    17. Maria Donovan Fitzpatrick, 2010. "Preschoolers Enrolled and Mothers at Work? The Effects of Universal Prekindergarten," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 28(1), pages 51-85, January.
    18. Charles Baum, 2002. "A dynamic analysis of the effect of child care costs on the work decisions of low-income mothers with infants," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 39(1), pages 139-164, February.
    19. Guido Imbens & Karthik Kalyanaraman, 2012. "Optimal Bandwidth Choice for the Regression Discontinuity Estimator," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 79(3), pages 933-959.
    20. Maria Donovan Fitzpatrick, 2012. "Revising Our Thinking About the Relationship Between Maternal Labor Supply and Preschool," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 47(3), pages 583-612.
    21. Inés Hardoy & Pål Schøne, 2015. "Enticing even higher female labor supply: the impact of cheaper day care," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 13(4), pages 815-836, December.
    22. Karen Mason & Karen Kuhlthau, 1992. "The perceived impact of child care costs on women’s labor supply and fertility," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 29(4), pages 523-543, November.
    23. Elizabeth U. Cascio, 2009. "Maternal Labor Supply and the Introduction of Kindergartens into American Public Schools," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 44(1).
    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. Matias Berthelon & Diana Kruger & Melanie Oyarzún, 2023. "School schedules and mothers’ employment: evidence from an education reform," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 21(1), pages 131-171, March.
    2. Swart, Lisette & Van den Berge, Wiljan & van der Wiel, Karen, 2019. "Do Parents Work More When Children Start School? Evidence from the Netherlands," IZA Discussion Papers 12207, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    3. Selina Gangl & Martin Huber, 2021. "From homemakers to breadwinners? How mandatory kindergarten affects maternal labour market outcomes," Papers 2111.14524, arXiv.org, revised Mar 2022.
    4. Cuiping Schiman, 2022. "Experimental evidence of the effect of head start on mothers’ labor supply and human capital investments," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 20(1), pages 199-241, March.
    5. Georgia Rudd & Kane Meissel & Frauke Meyer, 2023. "Measuring Childhood Exposure to Neighbourhood Deprivation at the Macro- and Micro-level in Aotearoa New Zealand," Child Indicators Research, Springer;The International Society of Child Indicators (ISCI), vol. 16(4), pages 1581-1606, August.
    6. Eckhoff Andresen, Martin & Havnes, Tarjei, 2019. "Child care, parental labor supply and tax revenue," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 61(C).
    7. Bruno Rodrigues & Vincent Vergnat, 2019. "The time and the transitions back to work in France after maternity," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 17(3), pages 861-888, September.
    8. Gangl, Selina & Huber, Martin, 2021. "From homemakers to breadwinners? How mandatory kindergarten affects maternal labour market attachment," VfS Annual Conference 2019 (Leipzig): 30 Years after the Fall of the Berlin Wall - Democracy and Market Economy 203636, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association, revised 2021.
    9. Halim,Daniel Zefanya & Perova,Elizaveta & Reynolds,Sarah, 2021. "Childcare and Mothers’ Labor Market Outcomes in Lower- and Middle-Income Countries," Policy Research Working Paper Series 9828, The World Bank.
    10. Swart, Lisette & Van den Berge, Wiljan & van der Wiel, Karen, 2019. "Do Parents Work More When Children Start School? Evidence from the Netherlands," IZA Discussion Papers 12207, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    11. Berthelon, Matias & Kruger, Diana & Lauer, Catalina & Tiberti, Luca & Zamora, Carlos, 2020. "Longer School Schedules, Childcare and the Quality of Mothers’ Employment: Evidence from School Reform in Chile," GLO Discussion Paper Series 525, Global Labor Organization (GLO).

    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. Carta, Francesca & Rizzica, Lucia, 2018. "Early kindergarten, maternal labor supply and children's outcomes: Evidence from Italy," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 158(C), pages 79-102.
    2. BOUSSELIN Audrey, 2019. "Expanding access to universal childcare: Effects on childcare arrangements and maternal employment," LISER Working Paper Series 2019-11, Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research (LISER).
    3. Taryn W. Morrissey, 2017. "Child care and parent labor force participation: a review of the research literature," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 15(1), pages 1-24, March.
    4. Francesca Carta & Lucia Rizzica, 2016. "Female employment and pre-kindergarten: On the unintended effects of an Italian reformAbstract: We theoretically show that when mothers need to buy childcare services not only if they work but also if," Working Papers 091, "Carlo F. Dondena" Centre for Research on Social Dynamics (DONDENA), Università Commerciale Luigi Bocconi.
    5. Brewer, Mike & Cattan, Sarah & Crawford, Claire & Rabe, Birgitta, 2016. "Free Childcare and Parents' Labour Supply: Is More Better?," IZA Discussion Papers 10415, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    6. Brewer, Mike & Cattan, Sarah & Crawford, Claire & Rabe, Birgitta, 2022. "Does more free childcare help parents work more?," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    7. Dang, Hai-Anh H. & Hiraga, Masako & Viet Nguyen, Cuong, 2022. "Childcare and maternal employment: Evidence from Vietnam," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 159(C).
    8. Bettendorf, Leon J.H. & Jongen, Egbert L.W. & Muller, Paul, 2015. "Childcare subsidies and labour supply — Evidence from a large Dutch reform," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 112-123.
    9. Müller, Kai-Uwe & Wrohlich, Katharina, 2020. "Does subsidized care for toddlers increase maternal labor supply? Evidence from a large-scale expansion of early childcare," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    10. Selina Gangl & Martin Huber, 2021. "From homemakers to breadwinners? How mandatory kindergarten affects maternal labour market outcomes," Papers 2111.14524, arXiv.org, revised Mar 2022.
    11. Laura Ravazzini, 2018. "Childcare and maternal part-time employment: a natural experiment using Swiss cantons," Swiss Journal of Economics and Statistics, Springer;Swiss Society of Economics and Statistics, vol. 154(1), pages 1-16, December.
    12. Yamaguchi, Shintaro & Asai, Yukiko & Kambayashi, Ryo, 2018. "Effects of subsidized childcare on mothers’ labor supply under a rationing mechanism," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 1-17.
    13. Gangl, Selina & Huber, Martin, 2021. "From homemakers to breadwinners? How mandatory kindergarten affects maternal labour market attachment," VfS Annual Conference 2019 (Leipzig): 30 Years after the Fall of the Berlin Wall - Democracy and Market Economy 203636, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association, revised 2021.
    14. Kazakova, Yuliya, 2019. "Childcare availability and maternal labour supply in Russia," ISER Working Paper Series 2019-11, Institute for Social and Economic Research.
    15. Daniela Vuri, 2016. "Do childcare policies increase maternal employment?," IZA World of Labor, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), pages 241-241, March.
    16. Anna Lovász & Ágnes Szabó-Morvai, 2019. "Childcare availability and maternal labor supply in a setting of high potential impact," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 56(6), pages 2127-2165, June.
    17. Pihl, Ariel Marek, 2022. "Head Start and mothers’ work: Free child care or something more?," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    18. Eckhoff Andresen, Martin & Havnes, Tarjei, 2019. "Child care, parental labor supply and tax revenue," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 61(C).
    19. Martínez A., Claudia & Perticará, Marcela, 2017. "Childcare effects on maternal employment: Evidence from Chile," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 126(C), pages 127-137.
    20. Francesca Carta & Lucia Rizzica, 2015. "Female employment and pre-kindergarten: on the uninteded effects of an Italian reform," Temi di discussione (Economic working papers) 1030, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.

    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:kap:reveho:v:15:y:2017:i:2:d:10.1007_s11150-016-9350-0. 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: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    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.