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1. Predictors of school dropout across Ethiopia, India, Peru and Vietnam

Author:
Santiago Cueto, Claudia Felipe, and Juan Leon
Publication Date:
07-2020
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Group for the Analysis of Development (GRADE)
Abstract:
In this paper the authors utilize the five rounds of Young Lives household surveys across four countries (Ethiopia, India, Peru and Vietnam) to study the characteristics of children who had dropped out of school by 22 years of age. While most children in the longitudinal sample go to primary school, they tend to drop out more often and earlier in Ethiopia. In India most children complete the early grades of school but drop out later, particularly in grades 11 and 13. Researchers find that in all countries, except Vietnam, there is a considerable number of children who drop out of school but at some point return to it, either to complete secondary or drop out again. The reasons provided by children for dropping out across the countries are oftentimes related to poverty: for example, the need to work, or care or provide for family. The multivariate analysis shows that indeed in many cases the wealth level of the family at an early age predicts later dropout, as does maternal education level, students’ early skills and residence in certain regions of each country. There are also some variations across countries; for example, boys are more likely to drop out of school in Ethiopia and Vietnam, and children who have repeated a grade are more likely to drop out of school in Peru. However, having high educational aspirations at early ages seems to be a protective factor against dropping out. This suggests that the value that children place on education may be an important preventative factor against dropping out. Overall, these results suggest the need to act early through education and social protection interventions to target young children who are at risk of dropping out, and the follow their trajectories, providing support as needed to specific groups and even individuals, so that all children may fulfill their right to complete at least secondary education.
Topic:
Education and Children
Political Geography:
Africa, India, Asia, Vietnam, Ethiopia, and Peru

2. The impact of intimate partner violence on child development in Peru

Author:
Mariel Bedoya, Karen Espinoza, and Alan Sanchez
Publication Date:
03-2018
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Group for the Analysis of Development (GRADE)
Abstract:
Resarchers used longitudinal data from a cohort of Peruvian children (n=1,720) tracked starting at the age of 1 year old to test the association between alcohol-induced physical IPV (intimate partner violence) against the mother during the child’s first two years of life, and the child’s cognitive, socio-emotional and schooling outcomes between the ages of 5 and 8. Multivariate regression techniques are used to estimate the relationship of interest, as they allow for controlling of child, household, and community characteristics. The authors find that early life exposure to IPV is negatively associated with cognitive outcomes (vocabulary and math test scores) for all children, and with self-efficacy for girls. We find no association with child’s self-esteem and age of school enrollment indicators. The effects are larger among children whose mothers are better educated and live in urban areas. Results remain robust across different specifications and after isolating changes in relevant variables over time.
Topic:
Development, Children, Gender Based Violence, Violence, and Intimate Partner Violence
Political Geography:
Latin America and Peru

3. Promoting prenatal health care in poor rural areas through conditional cash transfers: evidence from JUNTOS in Peru

Author:
Juan Jose Diaz and Victor Saldarriaga
Publication Date:
01-2017
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Group for the Analysis of Development (GRADE)
Abstract:
The authors assess the effects of JUNTOS, a conditional cash transfer program targeted to poor rural households in Peru, on the utilization of prenatal health care by women exposed to the program during their most recent pregnancy. They implement a difference-in-differences estimation technique to uncover the effects of JUNTOS on the utilization of prenatal health care, the quality of prenatal health care, utilization of health care at birth, and obstetric complications at birth. Researchers use data from the publicly available Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) from the period 2000-2014. Results suggest that the program has increased prenatal health care utilization. Even more salient, the results also suggest an improvement in the quality of health care received and a reduction of obstetric complications at birth.
Topic:
Development, Poverty, Children, Rural, Microeconomics, and Infants
Political Geography:
Latin America and Peru

4. Understanding teenage fertility, cohabitation, and marriage: the case of Peru

Author:
Marta Favara, Pablo Lavado, and Alan Sanchez
Publication Date:
09-2016
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Group for the Analysis of Development (GRADE)
Abstract:
In this study, the authors used data from the Young Lives study, which inves­tigates teenage childbearing, marriage, and cohabitation by tracking a cohort of individuals from the ages of 8 to 19 years. While the present analysis does not intend to establish causality, the longitudi­nal nature of the data allows the researchers to identify the combination of early circumstances and life changes that induce a higher likelihood of these events. The analysis addresses bias due both to reverse causality and to community characteristics that are usually unobserved and fixed over time, a strategy that is quite unique in studies of developing countries. About 1 out of 5 females (and 1 out of 20 males) in our sample had at least one child by the age of 19, and 80 percent of them were married or cohabiting. Early marriage/cohabitation is indeed intrinsically re­lated to early pregnancy and largely predicted by the same factors. For females specifically, girls from poor households with an absent parent for a prolonged period have a higher risk of early childbearing. Similarly, girls whose self-efficacy and educational aspirations decrease over time are more at risk of becoming a mother during adolescence. Conversely, school attendance and better school performance predict a lower risk of early pregnancy; the analysis suggests that this is largely because it postpones the first sexual relationship.
Topic:
Health, Children, Sexuality, Public Health, Young Adults, and Adolescence
Political Geography:
Latin America and Peru