Growing up together: cohort composition and child investment.
In sub-Saharan Africa, 60 % of child deaths are preventable by investments in child health as simple as immunizations, bed nets, or water purification. This article investigates how a household's decisions regarding such investments are affected by the size and gender composition of a child's cohort. I focus on a previously overlooked type of investment: nonrival, child-specific goods (club goods). I empirically estimate the response of immunization status to cohort characteristics. I carefully address the problem of endogenous fertility, which is common in cohort studies. Because most rural Senegalese households are composed of multiple nuclear families, a child's cohort is composed of both siblings and nonsibling children. Estimating within households, I instrument cohort characteristics with those of the nonsibling (exogenous) portion. I find that children with larger (or more predominantly male) cohorts of vaccine-eligible age are significantly more likely to receive immunization. These findings suggest that children with larger cohorts may be better off in terms of club investments; this is a significant finding for child health given that many illness prevention methods are of a club good nature.
International Food Policy Research Institute, 2033 K Street NW, Washington, DC, 20006, USA, k.jones@cgiar.org.
Kelly M
KM
Jones
D017954:Africa South of the Sahara; D000367:Age Factors; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005191:Family Characteristics; D006801:Humans; D012424:Rural Population; D012675:Senegal; D012737:Sex Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013997:Time Factors; D014611:Vaccination / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*