Publication:
Is the Baby to Blame? An Inquiry into the Consequences of Early Childbearing

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dc.contributor.authorPerova, Elizaveta
dc.contributor.authorAzevedo, Joao Pedro
dc.contributor.authorLopez-Calva, Luis F.
dc.date.accessioned2012-06-29T21:40:44Z
dc.date.available2012-06-29T21:40:44Z
dc.date.issued2012-05
dc.description.abstractTeenage pregnancy has been a cause of concern for policy makers because it is associated with a complex and often adverse social context for women. It is seen as the cause of lower social and economic achievement for mothers and their children, and as the potential determinant of inter-generational poverty traps. However, the question of whether pregnancy -- and the subsequent rearing of a child -- is actually the trigger of poverty, higher dependence on social welfare and/ or other undesirable social and economic consequences has not been studied in developing countries with enough rigor to establish a causal relation. This paper follows a methodology previously applied in the United States, using Mexican data from the National Survey of Demographic Dynamics, to exploit information about miscarriages as an instrument to identify the long-term consequences of early child bearing. Thus, the paper takes the advantage of a natural experiment: it compares the outcomes of women who became pregnant in adolescence, and gave birth, to outcomes of women who became pregnant in adolescence and miscarried. This approach only allows for estimating the costs of adolescent childbearing for teenagers in a risk group, that is, teenagers who are likely to experience a pregnancy. The results are consistent with findings in the United States, suggesting that, contrary to popular thinking, adolescent childbearing does not hamper significantly the lifelong opportunities of the young mothers. Actually, women who gave birth during their adolescence have on average 0.34 more years of education, and are 21 percentage points more likely to be employed, compared with their counterparts who miscarried. The results also suggest, however, greater dependence on social welfare among women who gave birth during adolescence: their social assistance income is 36 percent higher, and they are more likely to participate in social programs, especially the conditional cash transfer program Oportunidades.en
dc.identifierhttp://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2012/05/16274522/baby-blame-inquiry-consequences-early-childbearing
dc.identifier.doi10.1596/1813-9450-6074
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10986/9345
dc.languageEnglish
dc.publisherWorld Bank, Washington, DC
dc.relation.ispartofseriesPolicy Research Working Paper; No. 6074
dc.rightsCC BY 3.0 IGO
dc.rights.holderWorld Bank
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo/
dc.subjectABORTION
dc.subjectABORTION RATE
dc.subjectADOLESCENCE
dc.subjectADOLESCENT
dc.subjectADOLESCENT CHILDBEARING
dc.subjectADOLESCENT MOTHER
dc.subjectADOLESCENT MOTHERS
dc.subjectADOLESCENT PREGNANCY
dc.subjectADOLESCENT PREGNANT WOMEN
dc.subjectADOLESCENT YEARS
dc.subjectADOLESCENTS
dc.subjectADULTHOOD
dc.subjectAGE AT MENARCHE
dc.subjectBABIES
dc.subjectBABY
dc.subjectCARE DURING PREGNANCY
dc.subjectCHILD BEARING
dc.subjectCLANDESTINE ABORTION
dc.subjectCOMPLICATIONS
dc.subjectCONCEPTION
dc.subjectDEVELOPING COUNTRIES
dc.subjectDEVELOPMENT POLICY
dc.subjectEARLY CHILDBEARING
dc.subjectEARLY PREGNANCY
dc.subjectECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES
dc.subjectEPIDEMIOLOGICAL DATA
dc.subjectEPIDEMIOLOGICAL STUDIES
dc.subjectEQUALITY
dc.subjectEXTENDED FAMILY
dc.subjectFAMILIES
dc.subjectFAMILY FORMATION
dc.subjectFATHER
dc.subjectFATHERS
dc.subjectFEMALE
dc.subjectFERTILITY
dc.subjectFETUS
dc.subjectFIRST BIRTH
dc.subjectGIRLS
dc.subjectGYNECOLOGISTS
dc.subjectHEALTH INFORMATION
dc.subjectHEALTH PROFESSIONALS
dc.subjectHEALTH SERVICES
dc.subjectHEALTH STATUS
dc.subjectHOUSEHOLD LEVEL
dc.subjectINDUCED ABORTION
dc.subjectINDUCED ABORTIONS
dc.subjectINFANT
dc.subjectINFANT DEATHS
dc.subjectINSURANCE
dc.subjectINTERNATIONAL FAMILY PLANNING
dc.subjectINTERNATIONAL FAMILY PLANNING PERSPECTIVES
dc.subjectJOURNAL OF MEDICINE
dc.subjectLABOR MARKET
dc.subjectLABOR MARKETS
dc.subjectLAST MENSTRUAL PERIOD
dc.subjectLIVE BIRTH
dc.subjectLIVE BIRTHS
dc.subjectMARITAL STATUS
dc.subjectMEDICAL CARE
dc.subjectMEDICAL PERSONNEL
dc.subjectMEDICAL SERVICES
dc.subjectMENSTRUAL PERIODS
dc.subjectMISCARRIAGE
dc.subjectMISCARRIAGES
dc.subjectMORTALITY
dc.subjectMOTHER
dc.subjectNUMBER OF ABORTIONS
dc.subjectNUMBER OF CHILDREN
dc.subjectNUMBER OF WOMEN
dc.subjectOBSTETRICS
dc.subjectPOLICY DISCUSSIONS
dc.subjectPOLICY MAKERS
dc.subjectPOLICY RESEARCH
dc.subjectPOLICY RESEARCH WORKING PAPER
dc.subjectPOOR HEALTH
dc.subjectPREGNANCIES
dc.subjectPREGNANCY DURING ADOLESCENCE
dc.subjectPREGNANCY TESTS
dc.subjectPREGNANT WOMAN
dc.subjectPREGNANT WOMEN
dc.subjectPRIMARY EDUCATION
dc.subjectPROGRESS
dc.subjectRADIO
dc.subjectRISK FACTORS
dc.subjectSCHOOL ATTENDANCE
dc.subjectSECONDARY EDUCATION
dc.subjectSEX
dc.subjectSEXUAL ACTIVITY
dc.subjectSEXUAL RELATIONS
dc.subjectSOCIAL ISSUES
dc.subjectSOCIAL PROGRAMS
dc.subjectSOCIAL SCIENCE
dc.subjectSOCIAL WELFARE
dc.subjectSOCIOECONOMIC STATUS
dc.subjectSPOUSE
dc.subjectSPOUSES
dc.subjectSTERILIZATION
dc.subjectSTILLBIRTH
dc.subjectTEEN
dc.subjectTEEN PREGNANCY
dc.subjectTEENAGE CHILDBEARING
dc.subjectTEENAGE FERTILITY
dc.subjectTEENAGE MOTHER
dc.subjectTEENAGE MOTHERS
dc.subjectTEENAGE PREGNANCY
dc.subjectTEENAGER
dc.subjectTEENAGERS
dc.subjectTEENS
dc.subjectTV
dc.subjectUNIONS
dc.subjectUSE OF CONTRACEPTION
dc.subjectWIFE
dc.subjectWILL
dc.subjectWOMAN
dc.subjectYOUNG MOTHERS
dc.subjectYOUNG WOMEN
dc.subjectYOUNGER WOMEN
dc.titleIs the Baby to Blame? An Inquiry into the Consequences of Early Childbearingen
dspace.entity.typePublication
okr.crosscuttingsolutionareaGender
okr.crossref.titleIs the Baby to Blame? An Inquiry into the Consequences of Early Childbearing
okr.date.disclosure2012-05-01
okr.date.doiregistration2025-04-10T10:59:09.887735Z
okr.doctypePublications & Research::Policy Research Working Paper
okr.doctypePublications & Research
okr.docurlhttp://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2012/05/16274522/baby-blame-inquiry-consequences-early-childbearing
okr.globalpracticeGovernance
okr.globalpracticeHealth, Nutrition, and Population
okr.guid720411468125089861
okr.identifier.doi10.1596/1813-9450-6074
okr.identifier.externaldocumentum000158349_20120518084802
okr.identifier.internaldocumentum16274522
okr.identifier.reportWPS6074
okr.language.supporteden
okr.pdfurlhttp://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/WDSP/IB/2012/05/18/000158349_20120518084802/Rendered/PDF/WPS6074.pdfen
okr.region.administrativeLatin America & Caribbean
okr.region.countryUnited States
okr.region.countryMexico
okr.topicHealth, Nutrition and Population::Population Policies
okr.topicHealth, Nutrition and Population::Adolescent Health
okr.topicGender::Gender and Law
okr.topicHealth, Nutrition and Population::Reproductive Health
okr.topicGender::Gender and Health
okr.unitDevelopment Research Group (DECRG)
okr.volume1 of 1
relation.isAuthorOfPublication360f7a2e-0784-56e1-acf4-7f805fd50257
relation.isAuthorOfPublication4a5ab8d0-522b-5033-8fc3-5372cdcf7860
relation.isAuthorOfPublication.latestForDiscovery360f7a2e-0784-56e1-acf4-7f805fd50257
relation.isSeriesOfPublication26e071dc-b0bf-409c-b982-df2970295c87
relation.isSeriesOfPublication.latestForDiscovery26e071dc-b0bf-409c-b982-df2970295c87
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