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Terrorist attacks, Islamophobia and newborns’health

Author

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  • Grace Armijos Bravo

    (University of Barcelona & IEB & ESAI Business School-Universidad Espíritu Santo)

  • Judit Vall Castelló

    (Universitat de Barcelona, IEB & CRES-UPF)

Abstract

Islamophobia has increased in recent years which can be partly attributed to terrorist attacks perpetrated by jihadist groups. Islamophobia might be a source of stress, being problematic for pregnant (Muslim) women. We examine how stress generated by the 2017 Catalonia (Spain) attacks affected the health of newborns whose mothers are from a Muslim country (as the perpetrators). We use a difference-in-differences-in-differences model comparing newborns whose mothers come from a Muslim country and are residing in a municipality directly affected by the attacks, to other newborns, before-after the attacks. Results show that the share of low-birth-weight babies and deliveries with complications raise significantly by 23.77%, and 13.02%. We document a significant increase in Islamophobia and in emotional distress in our treated group. We conclude that one of the channels contributing to the deterioration of those newborns health is the stress faced by their mothers that resulted from the increase in Islamophobia.

Suggested Citation

  • Grace Armijos Bravo & Judit Vall Castelló, 2021. "Terrorist attacks, Islamophobia and newborns’health," Working Papers 2021/05, Institut d'Economia de Barcelona (IEB).
  • Handle: RePEc:ieb:wpaper:doc2021-05
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    Cited by:

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    2. Posso, Alberto, 2023. "Terrorism, banking, and informal savings: Evidence from Nigeria," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 150(C).
    3. Mirza, Daniel & Stancanelli, Elena & Verdier, Thierry, 2022. "Household expenditure in the wake of terrorism: Evidence from high frequency in-home-scanner data," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 46(C).
    4. Balsa, Ana I. & Triunfo, Patricia, 2022. "The COVID-19 pandemic and birth outcomes in 2020: The role of prenatal care and other channels," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 47(C).
    5. Romero-Ciavatto, J. Gabriel & Chirkova, Serafima, 2024. "Exposure to Islamophobia: The impacts of an increased risk of bullying victimization on human capital," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 52(C).
    6. Cortes, Darwin & Gómez, Catalina & Posso, Christian & Suarez, Gabriel, 2023. "Hunting Militias at All Cost: Urban Military Operation and Birth Outcomes," Documentos de Trabajo 20935, Universidad del Rosario.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Islamophobia; jihadist terrorism attacks; maternal stress; health at birth outcomes;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I14 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health and Inequality
    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination

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