Publication type
Journal Article
Authors
Publication date
February 15, 2013
Summary:
This article aims to answer to what extent fertility has a causal effect on households’ economic wellbeing—an issue that has received considerable interest in development studies and policy analysis. However, only recently has this literature begun to give importance to adequate modelling for estimation of causal effects. We discuss several strategies for causal inference, stressing that their validity must be judged on the assumptions we can plausibly formulate in a given application, which in turn depends on the richness of available data. We contrast methods relying on the unconfoundedness assumption, which include regressions and propensity score matching, with instrumental variable methods. This discussion has a general importance, representing a set of guidelines that are useful for choosing an appropriate strategy of analysis. The discussion is valid for both cross-sectional or panel data.
Published in
Empirical Economics
Volume and page numbers
Volume: 44 , p.355 -385
DOI
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00181-010-0356-9
ISSN
3777332
Subjects
Notes
Not held in Res Lib - bibliographic reference only
Online in Albert Sloman Library, except current 12 months
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