Does Couples' Division of Labor Influence Union Dissolution? Evidence from Parents of Young Children in Chile.

We examined the role of couples' division of labor in the risk of union dissolution among parents of young children in Chile. We looked at whether specialization in the labor market and domestic work predicts union dissolution, and whether these associations differ by parents' marital status and mother's education. Using panel data from the Chilean Encuesta Longitudinal de Primera Infancia (ELPI) 2010 and 2012 waves, we found that specialization in the division of labor is associated with a lower probability of union dissolution among parents of young children in Chile. Unlike prior evidence for the US and the Netherlands, specialization is stabilizing for both married and cohabiting couples. However, there are differences by mother's education. Among mothers with high school education or less, specialization in the division of labor is associated with a lower probability of divorce and separation. On the other hand, among mothers with at least some college education, specialization has no advantage over equality in generating more union stability. Our findings shed light on how the interaction of couple's division of labor and socioeconomic disadvantage may create unequal economic prospects for women and their children following union dissolution.

Do health sector measures of violence against women at different levels of severity correlate? Evidence from Brazil.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate if characteristics of reports of violence against women at different levels of severity are similar and to test if their prevalence is correlated at the municipal level. METHODS: I use data from women ages 15-49 who were killed by homicide in Brazil's national death registry (N = 14,373), were hospitalized for aggression (N = 14,701), or were included in the medical mandatory reports of incidents of violence against women (N = 42,134) between 2011 and 2016 in select municipalities. I provide national level descriptive statistics from 2016 contrasting distributions of victims (age, education, and race) and distributions of the characteristics of the incidents (location and time of day). Then, for 63 municipalities with a high number of violent incidents, I calculate the correlation coefficients between measures of violence against women using quarterly data from 2011 to 2016. I use multiple regression of municipal characteristics at baseline to examine which factors (poverty, spending, health, and civic engagement) predict the correlation. RESULTS: Victim characteristics and incident characteristics are similar across the measures of violence at the national level. Despite these aggregate similarities, correlations at the municipal level are quite varied, ranging from - 0.69 to 0.83. I find no municipal characteristics that consistently predict these correlation coefficients. CONCLUSIONS: Despite some similarities at an aggregate level, these measures of violence against women do not have consistent patterns of correlation at the municipality level. Measures of severe levels of violence against women are not good proxies for incidence of violence at less severe physical levels. Lack of correlations could be due to differences in reporting, but may also be due to differences in underlying processes that share similar victims and event characteristics.

Mothers' and grandmothers' caregiving for young children in Chile: Roles and responsibilities.

Chile has the highest rates of grandparent caregiving of young children among Western countries. However, there is limited information on (a) how mothers and grandmothers share caregiving responsibilities, (b) if mother's care for children differs across different types of grandmother support, and (c) the perceived roles that grandmothers have as caregivers. Through a mixed-methods approach, we seek to explore the areas mentioned above. Using a nationally representative survey (N = 4,288), we compare the frequency with which mothers participate in activities with their children ages 1-5 years by the degree of grandmother participation. We find that mothers participate in activities with their children and in their functional care at similar levels across grandmother caregiving types. The main exception is mothers with coresiding grandmothers taking a secondary caregiver role: These mothers reported a higher frequency of activities with their children than mothers with other types of grandmother involvement, even those who had majority caregiving or irregular caregiving grandmothers. In-depth interviews with mothers and grandmothers reveal how they share the caregiving responsibilities, which depend on the mother's work status, with families with working mothers having more involved grandmothers. The grandmother's level of responsibilities, in turn, seems to shape their perceived role as caregivers. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Household transitions between ages 5 and 15 and educational outcomes: Fathers and grandparents in Peru.

BACKGROUND: Latin America has high rates of single motherhood and intergenerational coresidence, resulting in children experiencing changes in household composition - particularly with respect to fathers and grandparents. In other contexts, such changes have been shown to influence educational outcomes. OBJECTIVE: To test if the presence of grandparents and fathers in the household are differentially associated with educational outcomes during schooling years in Peru. METHODS: Young Lives longitudinal data consist of around 2,000 children who were followed from age 1 to age 15 between 2002 and 2017. Using value-added and child fixed effects models, I examine if the number of changes in household structure involving fathers and grandparents, the type of change (exit or entrance), and the identity of the household members are associated with cognitive outcomes. Persistence was tested as well as heterogeneous associations by child's age at transition and disadvantage. RESULTS: More than half the children experienced a change in household composition between ages 5 and 15. Father separation was associated with worse cognitive scores and lower likelihood of being on-grade. This was strongest if separation occurred when children were older. Grandparent presence in the household was not as strongly correlated with child outcomes, but results suggest that children have better cognitive performance after grandparent separation from the household. Associations between household composition and child outcomes were stronger if children were disadvantaged. CONTRIBUTION: This research provides evidence that fathers and grandparents are both important contributors to child educational outcomes in a context where three-generational households are common.

Variation in primary health care services after implementation of quality improvement policy in Brazil.

BACKGROUND: Brazil is the most populous country with a public, universal and free health care system. The National Program for Access and Quality Improvement in Primary Care (PMAQ) was created to improve the quality of primary health care (PHC). OBJECTIVE: To evaluated whether progress generally has been made within Brazil's PHC since PMAQ implementation, and if changes occurred uniformly in the country, while also identifying municipal characteristics that may have influenced the improvement. METHODS: This is an observational study using data from PMAQ external evaluation (2012 and 2014), a 1200-item survey used to evaluate Brazilian PHC quality. After confirming the groupings of items using factor analysis, we created 23 composed indexes (CIs) related to infrastructure and work process. RESULTS: On average, the large majority of CIs showed improvements between 2012 and 2014. Region and city size moderated changes in the PHC indices differently. Overall, there were better improvements in infrastructure in the Northeast compared with other country regions, and in smaller cities (10 000-20 000 people). Infrastructure indices appear to have improved equitably across the country. Work process improvements varied with city size and region. CONCLUSION: Despite similar support of PMAQ across the country, improvements are not predictable nor homogeneous. Non-uniform improvements were seen in Brazil's PHC. Though we do not directly evaluate the effectiveness of the PMAQ (financial reward) method, these initial findings suggest that it is a potentially useful tool to improve health systems, but additional support may be needed in regions that lag behind in quality improvements.

A conditional cash transfer and Women's empowerment: Does Bolsa Familia Influence intimate partner violence?

We apply mixed methods to explore how a conditional cash transfer (CCT) may influence intimate partner violence (IPV). Qualitative interviews with female beneficiaries of Bolsa Familia, Brazil's CCT program, and service providers suggest positive, negative, and null associations between CCTs and IPV are all plausible. These associations result from a combination of economic and psychological motivations. We also use quantitative methods to examine if the expansion of Bolsa Familia between 2004 and 2009 affects the female homicide rate and marital separations. Using municipal level data in a difference-in-differences analysis, we find null associations between Bolsa Familia and female homicides. When we examine the impact on marriages and separations, indicative of a change in the reservation utility of women within the household, we find no impact on marriages but Bolsa Familia is associated with an increase in separations, and, to a greater extent, separations of couples with children. These results suggest Bolsa Familia impacts women's agency within the family, but not to the extent that it reduces the most extreme form of IPV.

What is the relative impact of primary health care quality and conditional cash transfer program in child mortality?

OBJECTIVE: Evaluate how coverage and quality of primary health care (PHC) and a conditional cash transfer (CCT) program associate with child mortality in Brazil. METHODS: Multivariate linear regression models and least absolute shrinkage and selection estimator (LASSO) were utilized with the municipal level child mortality rate as the key dependent variable. PHC quality with PHC and CCT coverage were the independent variables. The quality of the Brazilian PHC was assessed using the Brazilian National Program for Access and Quality Improvement in PHC data. PHC and CCT coverage were calculated based on Brazilian official databases. Human developmental index (HDI), municipality size, and country region were used as control variables. A total of 3441 municipalities were evaluated. RESULTS: We found that ESF (Estratégia Saúde da Família) quality variables PLANNING [Family Health Team Planning activities], CITYSUPPORT [municipality support for Family Health Strategy activities], EXAMS [exams offered and priority groups seen by the family health team], and PRENATAL [prenatal care and exams provided by the family health team], as well as HDI, percentage of PHC coverage, percentage of CCT coverage, and population size have significant and negative relationships with 1-year-old child mortality. LASSO regression results confirmed these associations. Quality is an important element of effective social service provision. CONCLUSION: This exploration represents one of the first investigations into the role of PHC system quality, and how it is related to health outcomes, while also considering PHC and conditional cash transfer program coverage. Quality of PHC, measured by work process variables, plays an important role in child mortality. Efforts on PHC quality and coverage, as well as on CCT program coverage, are important to child mortality reduction. Therefore, this is an important finding to other PHC public health services.

Can a conditional cash transfer reduce teen fertility? The case of Brazil's Bolsa Familia.

In 2008, Brazil's conditional cash transfer program expanded to cover a wider range of ages. Poor families are now given stipends for their children's school attendance up to age seventeen, whereas prior the maximum age was fifteen. Using a nationally representative household survey, we estimate the impact of this policy on teen fertility with a triple difference analysis on the fertility outcomes of treated cohorts vs. non-treated cohorts based on income eligibility, age eligibility, and timing of program implementation. We find a three percentage point drop in fertility among eligible teens within five years of program implementation. This offsets the difference in fertility between poor and non-poor teens. The impact is concentrated in urban areas, with no program effects found in rural areas. We are able to replicate these findings using National Birth Registry Data.

Sex of children and family structure in Brazil: father & grandmother bias?

Brazil has a high rate of mothers living without a partner as well as a high intergenerational co-residence rate, including parents and grandparents. These family types may influence a child's well-being. Even though there is no evidence of sex-selective abortion in Brazil, sex preference could still be subtly present. This paper tests the composition of family structure (father co-residence, grandmother co-residence, and birth of siblings) in Brazil associated with the sex of the child by using a nationally representative household survey, treating sex of the first and second child as exogenous variables in OLS regressions. I found women with lower birth-order daughters are less likely to live with a partner. I also found suggestive evidence that maternal grandmothers are more likely to live with granddaughters than with grandsons. Women with lower birth-order daughters are more likely to have additional children. Evidence suggests that in Brazil, fathers show a preference for sons over daughters, while grandmothers show a preference for granddaughters over grandsons. Additionally, mothers of girls, without co-residing partners may compensate for the economic loss caused by their lack of partner by living with their own mother. This contributes to the literature on child sex preferences, which has mostly focused on males (fathers); I have analyzed data on grandmothers to include females.

SEXO DA CRIANÇA E ESTRUTURA DOMICILIAR NO BRASIL VIÉS DOS PAIS E DOS AVÓS?: O Brasil tem um alto índice de mulheres vivendo sozinhas com seus filhos e de domicílios intergeracionais, nos quais há presença de pais e avós. A estrutura domiciliar pode influenciar o desenvolvimento infantil. Apesar de o Brasil não apresentar evidências de aborto seletivo por sexo, a preferência por gênero ainda pode estar sutilmente presente. Testamos se a corresidência com o pai, a corresidência com a avó e o nascimento de um próximo filho estão associados com o sexo das crianças no Brasil. Usando uma amostra representativa nacionalmente, foram realizadas regressões OLS, considerando o sexo do primeiro e do segundo filho como variáveis exógenas. Mulheres com filhas em menor ordem de nascimento são mais propensas a serem solteiras. Encontraram-se evidências de que as avós maternas são mais propensas a viver com netas do que com netos, o que pode amenizar as perdas econômicas da falta da presença do pai no domicílio. As mulheres com filhas em menor ordem de nascimento são mais propensas a terem filhos adicionais, sugerindo a preferência por filho homem. A literatura anterior tem um enfoque na presença do pai. Aqui inclui-se a avó para aumentar a perspectiva feminina. Estes dados contribuem para a literatura em relação à preferência pelo sexo das crianças, que se concentra na análise da figura masculina (pais); analisamos dados sobre as avós para incluir mulheres.

EL SEXO DEL NIÑO Y LA ESTRUCTURA DEL HOGAR EN BRASIL ¿PREFERENCIAS DE PADRES Y ABUELAS?: +Estos dos tipos de organizaciones familiares podrían influir en el bienestar de los niños. Aunque no hay evidencia en Brasil de preferencias de en aborto selectivo con base en el género, es posible que estas preferencias se presenten de manera más sutil. En este estudio se analiza si la estructura del hogar (corresidencia con el padre, corresidencia con la abuela y el nacimiento de los siguientes hijos) en Brasil está asociada con el sexo del niño. Usando una encuesta nacionalmente representativa y considerando el sexo del primer y segundo hijo como variables exógenas se hicieron regresiones OLS. Los resultados muestran que las mujeres con hijas en menor orden de nacimiento son más propensas a ser solteras. Además se encuentra evidencia sugerente de que las abuelas maternas son más propensas a vivir con nietas que con nietos, lo que puede compensar la pérdida económica por la falta del padre de los hijos en el domicilio. Las mujeres con hijas en menor orden de nacimientos son más propensas a tener hijos adicionales, lo que sugiere la preferencia por el hijo varón. Si bien la literatura previa a este estudio se enfoca sobre la presencia del padre en el hogar, el presente trabajo incluye a la abuela para aumentar la perspectiva femenina. Estos datos contribuyen a la literatura en relación con la preferencia por el sexo de los hijos que se concentra en el análisi de la figura masculina (padres).

Family structure and child development in Chile: A longitudinal analysis of household transitions involving fathers and grandparents.

BACKGROUND: Adults support child development economically, socially, and emotionally. Household transitions may disrupt these support structures, impacting child development. OBJECTIVE: We document the large portion of children in Chile that experience biological-father and grandparent household transitions, and test if these transitions are associated with child vocabulary and behavior and if income could be a mechanism behind our findings. METHODS: We apply first-differences and lagged-dependent-variable analyses to a large, nationally representative, longitudinal survey of over 5,000 Chilean children. RESULTS: We find that children whose mothers separated from their parents' homes within the two years between two survey rounds have worse age-normalized Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test scores than children in households without such transitions. Changes in income per capita do not explain these associations. When fathers enter households between the two survey rounds there is a gain in income per capita but no association between father entrance and child's vocabulary score. Similarly, there is no significant association between fathers separating from the household and child vocabulary, though father departure is associated with lower income per capita. We find no association between household transitions and Child Behavioral Checklist (CBCL) scores. CONCLUSIONS: These findings provide evidence that Chilean grandparents promote language development when coresiding with their grandchildren and that Chilean fathers are an important source of household income. CONTRIBUTION: Our study examines fathers and grandparents simultaneously. We are able to take the directionality (i.e., movement in or out of the home) of biological father transitions into account.

Sex of children and family structure in Brazil: father & grandmother bias? / Sexo da criança e estrutura domiciliar no Brasil: viés dos pais e dos avós? / El sexo del niño y la estructura del hogar en Brasil: ¿preferencias de padres y abuelas?

O Brasil tem um alto índice de mulheres vivendo sozinhas com seus filhos e de domicílios intergeracionais, nos quais há presença de pais e avós. A estrutura domiciliar pode influenciar o desenvolvimento infantil. Apesar de o Brasil não apresentar evidências de aborto seletivo por sexo, a preferência por gênero ainda pode estar sutilmente presente. Testamos se a corresidência com o pai, a corresidência com a avó e o nascimento de um próximo filho estão associados com o sexo das crianças no Brasil. Usando uma amostra representativa nacionalmente, foram realizadas regressões OLS, considerando o sexo do primeiro e do segundo filho como variáveis exógenas. Mulheres com filhas em menor ordem de nascimento são mais propensas a serem solteiras. Encontraram-se evidências de que as avós maternas são mais propensas a viver com netas do que com netos, o que pode amenizar as perdas econômicas da falta da presença do pai no domicílio. As mulheres com filhas em menor ordem de nascimento são mais propensas a terem filhos adicionais, sugerindo a preferência por filho homem. A literatura anterior tem um enfoque na presença do pai. Aqui inclui-se a avó para aumentar a perspectiva feminina. Estes dados contribuem para a literatura em relação à preferência pelo sexo das crianças, que se concentra na análise da figura masculina (pais); analisamos dados sobre as avós para incluir mulheres.

Brazil has a high rate of mothers living without a partner as well as a high intergenerational co-residence rate, including parents and grandparents. These family types may influence a child's well-being. Even though there is no evidence of sex-selective abortion in Brazil, sex preference could still be subtly present. This paper tests the composition of family structure (father co-residence, grandmother co-residence, and birth of siblings) in Brazil associated with the sex of the child by using a nationally representative household survey, treating sex of the first and second child as exogenous variables in OLS regressions. I found women with lower birth-order daughters are less likely to live with a partner. I also found suggestive evidence that maternal grandmothers are more likely to live with granddaughters than with grandsons. Women with lower birth-order daughters are more likely to have additional children. Evidence suggests that in Brazil, fathers show a preference for sons over daughters, while grandmothers show a preference for granddaughters over grandsons. Additionally, mothers of girls, without co-residing partners may compensate for the economic loss caused by their lack of partner by living with their own mother. This contributes to the literature on child sex preferences, which has mostly focused on males (fathers); I have analyzed data on grandmothers to include females.

Brasil tiene una alta tasa de madres viviendo solas con sus hijos y una alta tasa de corresidencia intergeneracional, con presencia de padres y abuelos. Estos dos tipos de organizaciones familiares podrían influir en el bienestar de los niños. Aunque no hay evidencia en Brasil de preferencias de en aborto selectivo con base en el género, es posible que estas preferencias se presenten de manera más sutil. En este estudio se analiza si la estructura del hogar (corresidencia con el padre, corresidencia con la abuela y el nacimiento de los siguientes hijos) en Brasil está asociada con el sexo del niño. Usando una encuesta nacionalmente representativa y considerando el sexo del primer y segundo hijo como variables exógenas se hicieron regresiones OLS. Los resultados muestran que las mujeres con hijas en menor orden de nacimiento son más propensas a ser solteras. Además se encuentra evidencia sugerente de que las abuelas maternas son más propensas a vivir con nietas que con nietos, lo que puede compensar la pérdida económica por la falta del padre de los hijos en el domicilio. Las mujeres con hijas en menor orden de nacimientos son más propensas a tener hijos adicionales, lo que sugiere la preferencia por el hijo varón. Si bien la literatura previa a este estudio se enfoca sobre la presencia del padre en el hogar, el presente trabajo incluye a la abuela para aumentar la perspectiva femenina. Estos datos contribuyen a la literatura en relación con la preferencia por el sexo de los hijos que se concentra en el análisi de la figura masculina (padres).

Women's police stations and intimate partner violence: Evidence from Brazil.

Although women's police stations have gained popularity as a measure to address intimate partner violence (IPV), there is little quantitative evaluation of their impacts on the incidence of IPV. This paper estimates the effects of women's police stations in Brazil on female homicides, a measure of the most severe form of IPV. Given that a high fraction of female deaths among women ages 15-49 years can be attributed to aggression by an intimate partner, female homicides appear the best proxy for severe IPV considering the scarcity of data on IPV in Brazil. We assemble a panel of 2074 municipalities from 2004 to 2009 and apply a difference-in-differences approach using location and timing to estimate the effect of establishing a women's police station on the municipal female homicide rate. Although we do not find a strong association on average, women's police stations appear to be highly effective among young women living in metropolitan areas. Establishing a women's police station in a metropolitan municipality is associated with a reduction in the female homicide rate by 1.23 deaths per 100,000 women ages 15-49 years (approximately a 17 percent reduction in the female homicide rate in metropolitan municipalities). The reduction in the homicide rate of women ages 15 to 24 is even higher: 5.57 deaths per 100,000 women. Better economic opportunities and less traditional social norms in metropolitan areas may explain the heterogeneous impacts of women's police stations.

Mothers' labor market choices and child development outcomes in Chile.

This paper examines associations between labor market participation of Chilean mothers and the cognitive, language, and socio-economic development of their children. Using a nationally-representative sample of 3-year-old children, we test if mothers' work intensity in the two previous years is associated with child development outcomes; data were collected in 2010 when children were one year old, and again in 2012, when they were three years old. We find that children who were three years old with mothers who worked for higher fractions of their children's lives in the previous two years perform significantly better on all tests (cognitive, language, socio-emotional) than children whose mothers had worked less, while controlling for baseline test performance. These main effects did not remain significant with the inclusion of a wide range of socio-economic, demographic control variables, however. Our results were similarly null when using an IV analysis or a propensity score matching approach. We provide descriptive information on theoretical pathways by which maternal work may influence child development. Though several of these pathways (e.g. preschool, toys, maternal stress) seem to be associated with both maternal work and child development outcomes, the pathways are not sufficiently strong to generate an association between maternal work and child development. We conclude that Chilean mothers' employment in early childhood generally does not have an effect on child development.

Participation in the Juntos Conditional Cash Transfer Program in Peru Is Associated with Changes in Child Anthropometric Status but Not Language Development or School Achievement.

BACKGROUND: It is unclear what effects a conditional cash transfer (CCT) program would have on child anthropometry, language development, or school achievement in the context of the nutrition transition experienced by many low- and middle-income countries. OBJECTIVE: We estimated the association of participation in Peru's Juntos CCT with anthropometry, language development, and school achievement among children aged 7-8 y. METHODS: We used data from the Young Lives Study of a cohort born between 2001 and 2002. We estimated associations of the Juntos program with height-for-age z score (HAZ), body mass index-for-age z score (BAZ), stunting, and overweight at age 7-8 y separately for children participating in the program for ≥2 y (n = 169) and children participating for <2 y (n = 188). We then estimated associations with receptive vocabulary and grade achievement among children who had been assessed at age 4-6 y before enrollment in Juntos (n = 243). We identified control subjects using propensity score matching and conducted difference-in-differences comparisons. RESULTS: Juntos participation was associated with increases in HAZ among boys participating for ≥2 y [average effect of treatment among the treated (ATT): 0.43; 95% CI: 0.09, 0.77; P = 0.01] and for boys participating for <2 y (ATT: 0.52; 95% CI: 0.23, 0.80; P < 0.01). Among girls participating in the program for ≥2 y, BAZ declined (ATT: -0.60; 95% CI: -1.00, -0.21; P < 0.01) as did the prevalence of overweight (ATT: -22.0 percentage points; 95% CI: -42.5, -2.7 percentage points; P = 0.03). We observed no significant associations of Juntos participation with receptive vocabulary or grade attainment. CONCLUSIONS: CCT program participation in Peru was associated with better linear growth among boys and decreased BAZ among girls, highlighting that a large-scale poverty-alleviation intervention may influence anthropometric outcomes in the context of the nutrition transition.