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Estimating the Production Function for Human Capital: Results from a Randomized Control Trial in Colombia

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  • Orazio Attanasio
  • Sarah Cattan
  • Emla Fitzsimons
  • Costas Meghir
  • Marta Rubio-Codina

Abstract

We examine the channels through which a randomized early childhood intervention in Colombia led to significant gains in cognitive and socio-emotional skills among a sample of disadvantaged children aged 12 to 24 months at baseline. We estimate the determinants of material and time investments in these children and evaluate the impact of the treatment on such investments. We then estimate the production functions for cognitive and socio-emotional skills. The effects of the program can be explained by increases in parental investments, which have strong effects on outcomes and are complementary to both maternal skills and child's baseline skills.

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  • Orazio Attanasio & Sarah Cattan & Emla Fitzsimons & Costas Meghir & Marta Rubio-Codina, 2015. "Estimating the Production Function for Human Capital: Results from a Randomized Control Trial in Colombia," NBER Working Papers 20965, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:20965
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    Cited by:

    1. Elizabeth M. Caucutt & Lance Lochner & Youngmin Park, 2017. "Correlation, Consumption, Confusion, or Constraints: Why Do Poor Children Perform so Poorly?," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 119(1), pages 102-147, January.
    2. Warn N. Lekfuangfu & Francesca Cornaglia & Nattavudh Powdthavee & Nele Warrinnier, 2014. "Locus of Control and Its Intergenerational Implications for Early Childhood Skill Formation," LICOS Discussion Papers 35314, LICOS - Centre for Institutions and Economic Performance, KU Leuven.
    3. Teodora Boneva & Christopher Rauh, 2015. "Parental Beliefs about Returns to Educational Investments: The Later the Better?," Working Papers 2015-019, Human Capital and Economic Opportunity Working Group.
    4. Orla Doyle, 2017. "The First 2,000 Days and Child Skills: Evidence from a Randomized Experiment of Home Visiting," Working Papers 201715, School of Economics, University College Dublin.
    5. Elizabeth M. Caucutt & Lance Lochner, 2012. "Early and Late Human Capital Investments, Borrowing Constraints, and the Family," NBER Working Papers 18493, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    6. Dongwoo Kim & Daniel Wilhelm, 2017. "Powerful t-Tests in the presence of nonclassical measurement error," CeMMAP working papers CWP57/17, Centre for Microdata Methods and Practice, Institute for Fiscal Studies.
    7. Francesco Agostinelli & Matthew Wiswall, 2016. "Identification of Dynamic Latent Factor Models: The Implications of Re-Normalization in a Model of Child Development," NBER Working Papers 22441, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    8. Fletcher Jason M. & Schurer Stefanie, 2017. "Origins of Adulthood Personality: The Role of Adverse Childhood Experiences," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 17(2), pages 1-22, April.
    9. Cheti Nicoletti & Valentina Tonei, 2017. "The response of parental time investments to the child’s skills and health," Discussion Papers 17/08, Department of Economics, University of York.
    10. Francesco Agostinelli & Matthew Wiswall, 2016. "Estimating the Technology of Children's Skill Formation," NBER Working Papers 22442, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    11. Jorge Rodriguez, 2017. "Understanding the Effects of Income and Child Care Subsidies on Children's Academic Achievement," 2017 Papers pro1077, Job Market Papers.
    12. Diana Lopez-Avila, 2016. "Measuring Women's Empowerment: lessons to better understand domestic violence," PSE Working Papers halshs-01294565, HAL.
    13. Orazio Attanasio & Costas Meghir & Emily Nix & Francesca Salvati, 2017. "Human Capital Growth and Poverty: Evidence from Ethiopia and Peru," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 25, pages 234-259, April.
    14. Juan Felipe Brando & Rafael J. Santos, 2015. "La Niña y los niños: Effects of an Unexpected Winter on Early Life Human Capital and Family Responses," DOCUMENTOS CEDE 013316, UNIVERSIDAD DE LOS ANDES-CEDE.
    15. Deckers, Thomas & Falk, Armin & Kosse, Fabian & Pinger, Pia & Schildberg-Hörisch, Hannah, 2017. "Socio-economic status and inequalities in children's IQ and economic preferences," DICE Discussion Papers 274, University of Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf Institute for Competition Economics (DICE).
    16. Heath, Rachel, 2017. "Fertility at work: Children and women's labor market outcomes in urban Ghana," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 126(C), pages 190-214.
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    18. Gaitz, Jason & Schurer, Stefanie, 2017. "Bonus Skills: Examining the Effect of an Unconditional Cash Transfer on Child Human Capital Formation," IZA Discussion Papers 10525, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA).
    19. Victor Lavy & Giulia Lotti & Zizhong Yan, 2016. "Empowering Mothers and Enhancing Early Childhood Investment: Effect on Adults Outcomes and Children Cognitive and Non-Cognitive Skills," NBER Working Papers 22963, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    20. Victoria Baranov & Sonia Bhalotra & Pietro Biroli & Joanna Maselko, 2017. "Maternal Depression, Women’s Empowerment, and Parental Investment: Evidence from a Large Randomized Control Trial," CHILD Working Papers Series 60 JEL Classification: I1, Centre for Household, Income, Labour and Demographic Economics (CHILD) - CCA.
    21. Nicoletti, Cheti & Tonei, Valentina, 2017. "The Response of Parental Time Investments to the Child's Skills and Health," IZA Discussion Papers 10993, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA).
    22. repec:iae:iaewps:wp2016n3 is not listed on IDEAS
    23. Baranov, Victoria & Bhalotra, Sonia R. & Biroli, Pietro & Maselko, Joanna, 2017. "Maternal Depression, Women’s Empowerment, and Parental Investment: Evidence from a Large Randomized Control Trial," IZA Discussion Papers 11187, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA).

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • H31 - Public Economics - - Fiscal Policies and Behavior of Economic Agents - - - Household
    • I24 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Inequality
    • I25 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Economic Development
    • I28 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Government Policy
    • I3 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty
    • J38 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Public Policy
    • O1 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development
    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration
    • O54 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - Latin America; Caribbean

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