Journal of Labor Economics Vol. 13 No. 2 1995
Adolescent Premarital Childbearing: Do Economic Incentives Matter?
Abstract
We develop an empirical model of adolescent premarital childbearing in which a woman's decisions affect a sequence of outcomes: premarital pregnancy, pregnancy resolution, and the occurrence of marriage before the birth. State welfare, abortion, and family planning policies alter the costs and benefits of these outcomes. For white adolescents welfare, abortion, and family planning policy variables have significant effects on these outcomes consistent with theoretical expectations. Black adolescents' behavior shows no association with the policy variables. The different racial results may reflect differences in sample size or important unmeasured racial differences in factors that influence fertility and marital behavior.
- DOI
- 10.1086/298372
- Volume
- 13
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 177-200
- Language
- en
- Sources
- openalex crossref