Abstract
This paper provides new evidence on the economic consequences of unilateral divorce laws on the future labor market outcomes of children. Using a cohort of young adults from the 1990 census, we examine the effect of living in a unilateral divorce state as a child on education, earnings, and marital status. Women with many years of childhood exposure to unilateral divorce laws have lower wages and have completed less schooling. However, there is no statistically significant effect of unilateral divorce exposure on men's wages. Both women and men are more likely to marry and less likely to get divorced with more years of exposure to unilateral divorce as a child. We also explore alternative mechanisms through which unilateral divorce laws can affect children's outcomes. The evidence suggests that while divorce rates did increase significantly as a result of the laws, bargaining power within the household is also an important factor driving our results.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.