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The role of marriage in the causal pathway from economic conditions early in life to mortality

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  • van den Berg, Gerard J.

    (IFAU - Institute for Labour Market Policy Evaluation)

  • Gupta, Sumedha

    (Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis)

Abstract

This paper analyzes the interplay between early-life conditions and marital status, as determinants of adult mortality. We use individual data from Dutch registers (years 1815-2000), combined with business cycle conditions in childhood as indicators of earlylife conditions. The empirical analysis estimates bivariate duration models of marriage and mortality, allowing for unobserved heterogeneity and causal effects. Results show that conditions around birth and school ages are important for marriage and mortality. Men typically enjoy a protective effect of marriage on mortality, whereas women suffer during childbearing ages. Having been born under favorable economic conditions reduces female mortality during childbearing ages.

Suggested Citation

  • van den Berg, Gerard J. & Gupta, Sumedha, 2011. "The role of marriage in the causal pathway from economic conditions early in life to mortality," Working Paper Series 2011:23, IFAU - Institute for Evaluation of Labour Market and Education Policy.
  • Handle: RePEc:hhs:ifauwp:2011_023
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    Cited by:

    1. Guner, Nezih & Kulikova, Yuliya & Llull, Joan, 2018. "Marriage and health: Selection, protection, and assortative mating," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 138-166.
    2. Andrew E. Clark & Conchita D’Ambrosio & Anthony Lepinteur, 2023. "Marriage as insurance: job protection and job insecurity in France," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 21(4), pages 1157-1190, December.
    3. Engdahl, Mattias & Godard, Mathilde & Skans, Oskar N., 2019. "Entrer sur le marché du travail en période de récession : quels effets sur le parcours familial ?," CEPREMAP Working Papers (Docweb) 1903, CEPREMAP.
    4. Manuel Flores & Adriaan Kalwij, 2014. "The associations between early life circumstances and later life health and employment in Europe," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 47(4), pages 1251-1282, December.
    5. Robert Scholte & Gerard J. van den Berg & Maarten Lindeboom & Dorly J.H. Deeg, 2017. "Does the Size of the Effect of Adverse Events at High Ages on Daily‐Life Physical Functioning Depend on the Economic Conditions Around Birth?," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 26(1), pages 86-103, January.
    6. Mattias Engdahl & Mathilde Godard & Oskar N Skans, 2018. "Early Labor Market Prospects and Family Formation," Working Papers halshs-01958437, HAL.
    7. James Banks & Iris Kesternich & James P. Smith, 2021. "International differences in interspousal health correlations," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 30(5), pages 1152-1177, May.
    8. Thompson, Kristina & Koolman, Xander & Portrait, France, 2021. "Height and marital outcomes in the Netherlands, birth years 1841-1900," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 41(C).
    9. Bünnings, Christian & Hafner, Lucas & Reif, Simon & Tauchmann, Harald, 2021. "In sickness and in health? Health shocks and relationship breakdown: Empirical evidence from Germany," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 190(C), pages 164-190.
    10. Shuai Chen & Jan C. Ours, 2018. "Subjective Well-being and Partnership Dynamics: Are Same-Sex Relationships Different?," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 55(6), pages 2299-2320, December.
    11. Fritze, Thomas & Doblhammer, Gabriele & van den Berg, Gerard J., 2014. "Can individual conditions during childhood mediate or moderate the long-term cognitive effects of poor economic environments at birth?," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 119(C), pages 240-248.
    12. Lombardi, Stefano & van den Berg, Gerard J. & Vikström, Johan, 2020. "Empirical Monte Carlo evidence on estimation of Timing-of-Events models," Working Paper Series 2020:26, IFAU - Institute for Evaluation of Labour Market and Education Policy, revised 05 Jan 2021.
    13. Fletcher, Jason M., 2018. "The effects of in utero exposure to the 1918 influenza pandemic on family formation," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 59-68.
    14. Hamid NoghaniBehambari & Farzaneh Noghani & Nahid Tavassoli, 2021. "Early-life Income Shocks and Old-Age Cause-Specific Mortality," Papers 2101.03943, arXiv.org.
    15. Schmidpeter, Bernhard, 2019. "Does stress shorten your life? Evidence from parental bereavement," Ruhr Economic Papers 834, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    16. Engdahl, Bo & Idstad, Mariann & Skirbekk, Vegard, 2019. "Hearing loss, family status and mortality – Findings from the HUNT study, Norway," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 220(C), pages 219-225.
    17. Guner, Nezih & Kulikova, Yuliya & Llull, Joan, 2018. "Reprint of: Marriage and health: Selection, protection, and assortative mating," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 109(C), pages 162-190.
    18. van den Berg, Gerard J. & Modin, Bitte, 2013. "Economic Conditions at Birth, Birth Weight, Ability, and the Causal Path to Cardiovascular Mortality," IZA Discussion Papers 7605, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    19. Bruno Arpino & Jordi Gumà & Albert Julià, 2018. "Early-life conditions and health at older ages: The mediating role of educational attainment, family and employment trajectories," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 13(4), pages 1-17, April.
    20. Cozzi, Guido & Francesconi, Marco & Lundberg, Shelly & Mantovan, Noemi & Sauer, Robert M., 2018. "Advancing the economics of gender: New insights and a roadmap for the future," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 109(C), pages 1-8.
    21. Chen, Shuai, 2019. "Marriage, minorities, and mass movements," Other publications TiSEM 9cb1b11d-12e6-46a8-adca-4, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    22. Noghanibehambari, Hamid & Engelman, Michal, 2022. "Social insurance programs and later-life mortality: Evidence from new deal relief spending," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
    23. M. Flores & A.S. Kalwij, 2011. "The associations between early life circumstances and later life health and employment in the Netherlands and Spain," Working Papers 11-10, Utrecht School of Economics.
    24. Noghanibehambari, Hamid, 2022. "Intergenerational health effects of Medicaid," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 45(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Death; longevity; recession; life expectancy; lifetimes; marital status; timing of events; selectivity; health;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C41 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric and Statistical Methods: Special Topics - - - Duration Analysis; Optimal Timing Strategies
    • E32 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Business Fluctuations; Cycles
    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • J14 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of the Elderly; Economics of the Handicapped; Non-Labor Market Discrimination
    • N13 - Economic History - - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Industrial Structure; Growth; Fluctuations - - - Europe: Pre-1913
    • N33 - Economic History - - Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy - - - Europe: Pre-1913

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