%0 Report
        %A Lehmann, Jee-Yeon K.
%A Nuevo-Chiquero, Ana
%A Vidal-Fernandez, Marian
        %T Explaining the Birth Order Effect: The Role of Prenatal and Early Childhood Investments
        %D 2012
        %8 2012 Jul
        %I Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)
        %C Bonn
        %7 IZA Discussion Paper
        %N 6755
        %U https://www.iza.org/index.php/publications/dp6755
        %X The critical role of prenatal and early childhood conditions on adult outcomes has been the focus of a rich body of research. In this paper, we examine various pre- and postnatal investments as possible sources behind the "birth order effect" – significant differences in the educational and labor market outcomes across children of varying birth orders. Taking advantage of a rich set of information on in utero and early childhood conditions in the Children of the NLSY79, we find that, within the same household, siblings of higher birth order experience a lower reduction in cigarette usage during pregnancy, are breastfed less often, and experience less cognitive stimulation and emotional support at ages 0 to 1. Next, we test for the presence of birth order effects in early cognitive and non-cognitive test scores and examine whether these differences can be explained by variations in prenatal and early childhood investments. Although there exists a significant negative relationship between birth order and early cognitive/non-cognitive test scores, the size and the significance of the negative birth order effects in test scores and educational attainment are robust to controlling for variations in early childhood factors.
        %K birth order
%K early test scores
%K parental investment
%K prenatal investment
%K postnatal investment
%K early childhood investment
%K fetal origins hypothesis
%K cognitive outcomes
%K non-cognitive outcomes