Maternal Employment and Childhood Obesity: A Search for Mechanisms in Time Use Data

John Cawley and Feng Liu

No 13600, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: Recent research has found that maternal employment is associated with an increased risk of childhood obesity. This paper explores mechanisms for that correlation. We estimate models of instrumental variables using a unique dataset, the American Time Use Survey, that measure the effect of maternal employment on the mother's allocation of time to activities related to child diet and physical activity. We find that employed women spend significantly less time cooking, eating with their children, and playing with their children, and are more likely to purchase prepared foods. We find suggestive evidence that these decreases in time are only partly offset by husbands and partners. These findings offer plausible mechanisms for the association of maternal employment with childhood obesity.

JEL-codes: I12 J13 J22 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2007-11
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hea
Note: CH EH LS
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (48)

Published as Cawley, John, and Feng Liu. "Maternal Employment and Childhood Obesity: A Search for Mechanisms in Time Use Data." Economics and Human Biology. 2012, 10(4): 352-364.

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Journal Article: Maternal employment and childhood obesity: A search for mechanisms in time use data (2012)
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