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The role of health at birth and parental investment in early child development: evidence from the French ELFE cohort

Author

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  • Marion Davin

    (CEE-M, Univ. Montpellier, CNRS, INRAE, SupAgro
    CEE-M, Univ. Montpellier, CNRS, INRAE, SupAgro)

  • Emmanuelle Lavaine

    (CEE-M, Univ. Montpellier, CNRS, INRAE, SupAgro)

Abstract

This paper combines a theoretical and an empirical approach to address how health at birth affects child development. Using a simple theoretical model in which parents invest in their children, we identify the mechanisms through which better health at birth can improve child development. We also emphasise how parental socioeconomic status can shape the effects of health at birth. We perform an empirical analysis on a French cohort of children born in 2011, using a unique dataset ELFE. We identify the effect of birth weight and gestational age on child development at 1 year. The results indicate that only gestational age positively affects early development. We find no empirical evidence for the existence of a severity effect, according to which the adverse effects of poor health at birth are higher for children in low-income families or with poorly educated mothers.

Suggested Citation

  • Marion Davin & Emmanuelle Lavaine, 2021. "The role of health at birth and parental investment in early child development: evidence from the French ELFE cohort," The European Journal of Health Economics, Springer;Deutsche Gesellschaft für Gesundheitsökonomie (DGGÖ), vol. 22(8), pages 1217-1237, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:eujhec:v:22:y:2021:i:8:d:10.1007_s10198-021-01332-x
    DOI: 10.1007/s10198-021-01332-x
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    1. Emmanuelle Lavaine & Marion Davin, 2021. "The Role of Health at Birth and Parental Investment in Early Child Development. Evidence from the French ELFE Cohort," Post-Print hal-03349127, HAL.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Early child development; Health at birth; Parental investment;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C26 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Instrumental Variables (IV) Estimation
    • I14 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health and Inequality
    • I18 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health

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