【本期主题】Welfare Reform and Children's Short-Run Attainments
The effects of single mothers’ welfare participation and work decisions on children’s outcomes are
important. First, theories and empirical studies regarding the effects of mothers’ work on children’s
attainments yield ambiguous findings. Second, participating in AFDC also exhibits a negative statistical
relationship with the participating children’s possible outcomes of all sorts in the data. We develop a
dynamic structural model of a single mother’s work and welfare participation decisions while their children
are young. This model is used to measure the effects of mothers’ decisions on children’s attainments in the
short run. Using NLSY79 children’s PIAT Math test scores as a measure of attainment, we find that single
mother’s work and welfare use in the first five years of her child’s life both have positive effect on her
child’s outcome, but this effect declines by the initial ability. The higher the potential ability of child, the
lower the positive impact work and welfare have. In fact, in case of welfare the effect is negative if child has
more than about median initial ability. Furthermore, we find that work requirement reduces a single
mother’s use of welfare.However, the net effect of work requirement on a child’s test score depends on
whether mother’s work brings in enough labor income to compensate for the loss of welfare benefits. We
also look at the implications of welfare eligibility time limit, child bonus, and maternal leave, on child’s
outcome. The basic finding is as long as a policy initiative increases mothers’ work, it is beneficial to her
child’s outcome.
【报告人】齐豪，中国人民大学汉青经济与金融高级研究院助理教授，美国威斯康辛大学麦迪逊分校经济学博士
【时 间】11月24日中午 12:00
【地 点】明德主楼729
诚邀您参加。如果您有兴趣，请于11月17日前回复邮件hanqing.seminar@gmail.com或电话联系，我们将为老师准备工作餐。联系人：李红梅 62514479
报告人简介：
齐豪，中国人民大学汉青经济与金融高级研究院助理教授。分别在台湾政治大学和台湾大学取得财务管理学学士以及经济学硕士，于2006年获得美国威斯康辛大学麦迪逊校区经济学博士。曾于2006年到2010年在厦门大学王亚南研究院做助理教授。主要研究领域为公共经济学、劳动经济学与应用微观经济学等。
财政金融学院
梁晶工作室
二零一零年十一月十九日
讲座相关资料：
mdd.pdf
