IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/ecoedu/v90y2022ics0272775722000772.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Natural disasters and human capital accumulation: Evidence from the 1976 Tangshan earthquake

Author

Listed:
  • Tian, Xinping
  • Gong, Jinquan
  • Zhai, Zhe

Abstract

This study analyzes the effects of fetal exposure to an earthquake in China on long-term human capital accumulation. We exploit the geographical and cohort variation in exposure to the 1976 Tangshan earthquake as a natural experiment. We separately estimate the effects of in utero exposure to high-intensity and low-intensity earthquake shaking. Difference-in-differences results indicate that individuals who experienced either high-intensity or low-intensity earthquake shaking in utero have lower educational attainment in adulthood. Since almost all the casualties and economic losses were concentrated in high-intensity regions during the earthquake, we argue that maternal psychological stress is a potential mechanism behind the effects of low-intensity shaking. We also find that females are more affected than males. However, we find no evidence of adverse effects on labor market outcomes.

Suggested Citation

  • Tian, Xinping & Gong, Jinquan & Zhai, Zhe, 2022. "Natural disasters and human capital accumulation: Evidence from the 1976 Tangshan earthquake," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecoedu:v:90:y:2022:i:c:s0272775722000772
    DOI: 10.1016/j.econedurev.2022.102304
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272775722000772
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.econedurev.2022.102304?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. Yoav Benjamini & Abba M. Krieger & Daniel Yekutieli, 2006. "Adaptive linear step-up procedures that control the false discovery rate," Biometrika, Biometrika Trust, vol. 93(3), pages 491-507, September.
    2. Anderson, Michael L, 2008. "Multiple Inference and Gender Differences in the Effects of Early Intervention: A Reevaluation of the Abecedarian, Perry Preschool, and Early Training Projects," Department of Agricultural & Resource Economics, UC Berkeley, Working Paper Series qt15n8j26f, Department of Agricultural & Resource Economics, UC Berkeley.
    3. Rocha, Rudi & Soares, Rodrigo R., 2015. "Water scarcity and birth outcomes in the Brazilian semiarid," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 72-91.
    4. Krzysztof Karbownik & Anthony Wray, 2019. "Long-Run Consequences of Exposure to Natural Disasters," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 37(3), pages 949-1007.
    5. Douglas Almond & Janet Currie & Valentina Duque, 2018. "Childhood Circumstances and Adult Outcomes: Act II," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 56(4), pages 1360-1446, December.
    6. Kim, Bongkyun & Carruthers, Celeste K. & Harris, Matthew C., 2017. "Maternal stress and birth outcomes: Evidence from the 1994 Northridge earthquake," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 140(C), pages 354-373.
    7. Anja Benshaul-Tolonen, 2019. "Local Industrial Shocks and Infant Mortality," The Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 129(620), pages 1561-1592.
    8. Burlando, Alfredo, 2014. "Transitory shocks and birth weights: Evidence from a blackout in Zanzibar," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 108(C), pages 154-168.
    9. Deuchert, Eva & Felfe, Christina, 2015. "The tempest: Short- and long-term consequences of a natural disaster for children׳s development," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 280-294.
    10. A. Colin Cameron & Jonah B. Gelbach & Douglas L. Miller, 2008. "Bootstrap-Based Improvements for Inference with Clustered Errors," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 90(3), pages 414-427, August.
    11. Brown, Philip H. & Park, Albert, 2002. "Education and poverty in rural China," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 21(6), pages 523-541, December.
    12. Florencia Torche, 2011. "The Effect of Maternal Stress on Birth Outcomes: Exploiting a Natural Experiment," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 48(4), pages 1473-1491, November.
    13. Lin, Ming-Jen & Liu, Elaine M., 2014. "Does in utero exposure to Illness matter? The 1918 influenza epidemic in Taiwan as a natural experiment," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 152-163.
    14. David S. Lee, 2009. "Training, Wages, and Sample Selection: Estimating Sharp Bounds on Treatment Effects," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 76(3), pages 1071-1102.
    15. Heger, Martin Philipp & Neumayer, Eric, 2019. "The impact of the Indian Ocean tsunami on Aceh’s long-term economic growth," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 141(C).
    16. Anderson, Michael L., 2008. "Multiple Inference and Gender Differences in the Effects of Early Intervention: A Reevaluation of the Abecedarian, Perry Preschool, and Early Training Projects," Journal of the American Statistical Association, American Statistical Association, vol. 103(484), pages 1481-1495.
    17. Guo Xu, 2011. "Long-Run Consequences of Natural Disasters: Evidence from Tangshan," Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin 1117, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
    18. Schwandt, Hannes, 2017. "The Lasting Legacy of Seasonal Influenza: In-Utero Exposure and Labor Market Outcomes," IZA Discussion Papers 10589, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    19. Sun, Ang & Zhao, Yaohui, 2016. "Divorce, abortion, and the child sex ratio: The impact of divorce reform in China," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 120(C), pages 53-69.
    20. Petra Persson & Maya Rossin-Slater, 2018. "Family Ruptures, Stress, and the Mental Health of the Next Generation," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 108(4-5), pages 1214-1252, April.
    21. Paudel, Jayash & Ryu, Hanbyul, 2018. "Natural disasters and human capital: The case of Nepal’s earthquake," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 1-12.
    22. Brian Beach & Ryan Brown & Joseph Ferrie & Martin Saavedra & Duncan Thomas, 2022. "Reevaluating the Long-Term Impact of In Utero Exposure to the 1918 Influenza Pandemic," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 130(7), pages 1963-1990.
    23. Hongbin Li & Junjian Yi & Junsen Zhang, 2011. "Estimating the Effect of the One-Child Policy on the Sex Ratio Imbalance in China: Identification Based on the Difference-in-Differences," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 48(4), pages 1535-1557, November.
    24. Eduardo Cavallo & Sebastian Galiani & Ilan Noy & Juan Pantano, 2013. "Catastrophic Natural Disasters and Economic Growth," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 95(5), pages 1549-1561, December.
    25. Ryan Brown, 2020. "The Intergenerational Impact of Terror: Did the 9/11 Tragedy Impact the Initial Human Capital of the Next Generation?," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 57(4), pages 1459-1481, August.
    26. Adriana Camacho, 2008. "Stress and Birth Weight: Evidence from Terrorist Attacks," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 98(2), pages 511-515, May.
    27. Douglas Almond & Janet Currie, 2011. "Killing Me Softly: The Fetal Origins Hypothesis," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 25(3), pages 153-172, Summer.
    28. Sarah Fuller, 2014. "The Effect of Prenatal Natural Disaster Exposure on School Outcomes," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 51(4), pages 1501-1525, August.
    29. Akbulut-Yuksel, Mevlude, 2017. "War during childhood: The long run effects of warfare on health," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 117-130.
    30. Xin Meng & Nancy Qian, 2009. "The Long Term Consequences of Famine on Survivors: Evidence from a Unique Natural Experiment using China's Great Famine," NBER Working Papers 14917, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    31. Currie, Janet & Rossin-Slater, Maya, 2013. "Weathering the storm: Hurricanes and birth outcomes," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 32(3), pages 487-503.
    32. Florencia Torche, 2018. "Prenatal Exposure to an Acute Stressor and Children’s Cognitive Outcomes," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 55(5), pages 1611-1639, October.
    33. Xu, Guo, 2011. "Long-run consequences of natural disasters: Evidence from Tangshan," Proceedings of the German Development Economics Conference, Berlin 2011 82, Verein für Socialpolitik, Research Committee Development Economics.
    34. Caruso, Germán & Miller, Sebastian, 2015. "Long run effects and intergenerational transmission of natural disasters: A case study on the 1970 Ancash Earthquake," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 134-150.
    35. Emilia Simeonova, 2011. "Out of Sight, Out of Mind? Natural Disasters and Pregnancy Outcomes in the USA," CESifo Economic Studies, CESifo, vol. 57(3), pages 403-431, September.
    36. Arindam Nandi & Sumit Mazumdar & Jere R. Behrman, 2018. "The effect of natural disaster on fertility, birth spacing, and child sex ratio: evidence from a major earthquake in India," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 31(1), pages 267-293, January.
    37. Diane Lauderdale, 2006. "Birth outcomes for Arabic-named women in California before and after September 11," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 43(1), pages 185-201, February.
    38. Connelly, Rachel & Zheng, Zhenzhen, 2003. "Determinants of school enrollment and completion of 10 to 18 year olds in China," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(4), pages 379-388, August.
    39. Petra Persson & Maya Rossin-Slater, 2018. "Family Ruptures, Stress, and the Mental Health of the Next Generation: Reply," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 108(4-5), pages 1256-1263, April.
    40. Wang, Jun & Yang, Juan & Li, Bo, 2017. "Pain of disasters: The educational cost of exogenous shocks evidence from Tangshan Earthquake in 1976," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 27-49.
    41. Sandra E. Black & Paul J. Devereux & Kjell G. Salvanes, 2016. "Does Grief Transfer across Generations? Bereavements during Pregnancy and Child Outcomes," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 8(1), pages 193-223, January.
    42. Tsang, Mun C., 1996. "Financial reform of basic education in China," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 15(4), pages 423-444, October.
    43. Chen, Yuyu & Zhou, Li-An, 2007. "The long-term health and economic consequences of the 1959-1961 famine in China," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 26(4), pages 659-681, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Victor Hugo de Oliveira & Ines Lee & Climent Quintana-Domeque, 2023. "Natural Disasters and Early Human Development: Hurricane Catarina and Infant Health in Brazil," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 58(3), pages 819-851.
    2. Krzysztof Karbownik & Anthony Wray, 2019. "Long-Run Consequences of Exposure to Natural Disasters," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 37(3), pages 949-1007.
    3. Petra Persson & Maya Rossin-Slater, 2018. "Family Ruptures, Stress, and the Mental Health of the Next Generation," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 108(4-5), pages 1214-1252, April.
    4. Hoa Vu, 2024. "I wish I were born in another time: Unintended consequences of immigration enforcement on birth outcomes," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 33(2), pages 345-362, February.
    5. Andrea Kutinova Menclova & Steven Stillman, 2020. "Maternal stress and birth outcomes: Evidence from an unexpected earthquake swarm," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(12), pages 1705-1720, December.
    6. Berthelon, Matias & Kruger, Diana & Sanchez, Rafael, 2021. "Maternal stress during pregnancy and early childhood development," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 43(C).
    7. Arna Olafsson, 2016. "Household Financial Distress and Initial Endowments: Evidence from the 2008 Financial Crisis," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 25(S2), pages 43-56, November.
    8. Grossman, Daniel & Khalil, Umair, 2022. "Neighborhood crime and infant health," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 130(C).
    9. Armijos Bravo, Grace & Vall Castelló, Judit, 2021. "Terrorist attacks, Islamophobia and newborns’ health," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    10. Dagnelie, Olivier & Luca, Giacomo Davide De & Maystadt, Jean-François, 2018. "Violence, selection and infant mortality in Congo," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 153-177.
    11. INUI Tomohiko & OKUDAIRA Hiroko, 2022. "Parental Investment after Adverse Event: Evidence from the Great East Japan Earthquake," Discussion papers 22049, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    12. von Hinke, Stephanie & Rice, Nigel & Tominey, Emma, 2022. "Mental health around pregnancy and child development from early childhood to adolescence," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    13. Carlson, Kyle, 2015. "Fear itself: The effects of distressing economic news on birth outcomes," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 117-132.
    14. Ahammer, Alexander & Halla, Martin & Schneeweis, Nicole, 2020. "The effect of prenatal maternity leave on short and long-term child outcomes," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    15. Richard Akresh & Sonia Bhalotra & Marinella Leone & Una Osili, 2023. "First- and Second-Generation Impacts of the Biafran War," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 58(2), pages 488-531.
    16. Chuard, Caroline, 2020. "Womb at work: The missing impact of maternal employment on newborn health," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    17. Shirlee Lichtman-Sadot & Neta Benshalom-Tirosh & Eyal Sheiner, 2020. "Conflict, Rockets, and Birth Outcomes: Evidence from Israel’s Operation Protective Edge," Working Papers 2009, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Department of Economics.
    18. Phadera, Lokendra, 2021. "Unfortunate Moms and Unfortunate Children: Impact of the Nepali Civil War on Women's Stature and Intergenerational Health," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    19. Joan Calzada & Meritxell Gisbert & Bernard Moscoso, 2021. "The hidden cost of bananas: pesticide effects on newborns’ health," UB School of Economics Working Papers 2021/405, University of Barcelona School of Economics.
    20. Hoyong Jung, 2023. "Can Universal Cash Transfer Save Newborns’ Birth Weight During the Pandemic?," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 42(1), pages 1-22, February.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Natural disasters; Earthquake; Human capital; Maternal stress; China;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q5 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics
    • N3 - Economic History - - Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy
    • D91 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making

    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:eee:ecoedu:v:90:y:2022:i:c:s0272775722000772. 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: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/econedurev .

    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.