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Contextualizing child labor reforms: Education policy, legal bans, and female child labor in rural South India

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  • Posso, Alberto

Abstract

The prevailing consensus in the economics literature suggests that child labor laws are generally ineffective. However, this view often overlooks the broader policy context that shapes such reforms. India's 2012 Child Labor Amendment Act emerged after a period of significant reform aimed at improving girls' education, particularly through the 2009 education reforms. This paper sustains that these reforms potentially altered societal perceptions regarding the marginal value of girls' education, while the Child Labor Act highlighted the hazards of child labor in agriculture. Together, these measures may have created a more favorable environment for reducing rural female child labor. Using panel data from Young Lives and a triple difference-in-difference methodology, this study documents a significant reduction in female child labor in rural India. The findings highlight the importance of contextualizing legal reforms and emphasize the need for nuanced assessments to better understand their heterogeneous outcomes.

Suggested Citation

  • Posso, Alberto, 2025. "Contextualizing child labor reforms: Education policy, legal bans, and female child labor in rural South India," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 235(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jeborg:v:235:y:2025:i:c:s0167268125001702
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jebo.2025.107051
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Child labor; Child labor laws; Behavioral change; Education; Gendered responses; India;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • K31 - Law and Economics - - Other Substantive Areas of Law - - - Labor Law
    • J46 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Particular Labor Markets - - - Informal Labor Market
    • O12 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development

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