Parental Health Outcomes of Children’s Migration: Experimental Evidence from Ethiopia

Abstract

AbstractThis study uses experimental data from the United States Diversity‐Visa (DV) lottery to explore the impact of migration of children on the sending parents’ health, helping to overcome the selection bias issue that plagues similar studies. Based on the inverted U‐shaped relationship between BMI and longevity, the study finds that the health prospects of senders with BMIs under 25 increase weakly with migration, decreasing for those in the overweight category. In families with more educated fathers, migration improves the health status of the senders in all weight groups. Overall, it affects the emotional health of the senders adversely, but not in families which gain access to improved sanitation facilities due to migration. The most plausible explanations for this finding are that migration inflicts emotional costs on the senders due to separation from a family member, and that it potentially changes the senders’ perception of what constitutes good health.