Learning from Teen Childbearing Experiences of Close Friends: Evidence using Miscarriages as a Natural Experiment

Olga Yakusheva () and Jason Fletcher
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Olga Yakusheva: University of Michigan, School of Nursing

The Review of Economics and Statistics, 2015, vol. 97, issue 1, 29-43

Abstract: We examine peer effects in teen childbearing among close friends, using miscarriages as a natural experiment. We use 775 women from the core sample of Add Health who had a friend with a teen pregnancy. We find a sizable negative treatment effect: a close friend’s teen birth is associated with a 6 percentage point reduction in the likelihood of own teen pregnancy and childbearing. There is evidence that this effect operates through a learning mechanism by changing beliefs regarding early childbearing. Effects of teen pregnancy prevention policies may be partially offset by reductions in the opportunities for social learning. © 2015 The President and Fellows of Harvard College and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Keywords: peer effects; teen childbearing; miscarriages (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I10 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (26)

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