Lone Motherhood, Childhood Resources, and the Dynamics of Skill Formation

Hansen, Jörgen () and Bidhan Shaha ()
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Hansen, Jörgen: Concordia University
Bidhan Shaha: Concordia University

No 19048, IZA Discussion Papers from IZA Network @ LISER

Abstract: Children who experience lone motherhood differ from children who remain with both biological parents before family transitions occur, complicating observed family structure gaps. Using the Children of the NLSY79, we estimate a dynamic model of family arrangements, financial resources, parental investment, and child skills with persistent family heterogeneity. A transition into lone motherhood at age 7 generates a persistent resource decline and gradually widening skill differences, reducing schooling and adult wages. A Shapley decomposition attributes about 94 percent of the adult effects to the resource-to-skill pathway. Complementary counterfactuals show that timing and persistence shape the developmental consequences of family change.

Keywords: family structure; financial resources; child development; cash transfers; skill formation; latent heterogeneity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C33 C38 I24 J12 J13 J24 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026-10
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