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American Economic Review Vol. 106 No. 4 2016

Long-Run Impacts of Childhood Access to the Safety Net

Hilary Hoynes1; Diane Whitmore Schanzenbach2; Douglas Almond3

1 University of California, Berkeley, 2607 Hearst Ave., #7320, Berkeley, CA 94720, and NBER (e-mail: ) · 2 Northwestern University, 2120 Campus Drive, Evanston, IL 60208, and NBER (e-mail: ) · 3 Columbia University, 420 West 118th Street, New York, NY 10027 (e-mail: )

open access

Abstract

We examine the impact of a positive and policy-driven change in economic resources available in utero and during childhood. We focus on the introduction of the Food Stamp Program, which was rolled out across counties between 1961 and 1975. We use the Panel Study of Income Dynamics to assemble unique data linking family background and county of residence in early childhood to adult health and economic outcomes. Our findings indicate access to food stamps in childhood leads to a significant reduction in the incidence of metabolic syndrome and, for women, an increase in economic self-sufficiency.

DOI
10.1257/aer.20130375
Volume
106
Issue
4
Pages
903-934
Language
en
Sources
openalex bibtex:phds-export.bib crossref

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