The Impact of Welfare Benefits on Single Motherhood and Headship of Young Women: Evidence from the Census

37 Pages Posted: 30 Nov 2002 Last revised: 9 Jul 2022

See all articles by Francine D. Blau

Francine D. Blau

Cornell University - Department of Economics; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER); CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute for Economic Research); IZA Institute of Labor Economics; German Institute for Economic Research (DIW Berlin)

Lawrence M. Kahn

Cornell University - School of Industrial and Labor Relations; CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute for Economic Research); IZA Institute of Labor Economics

Jane Waldfogel

IZA Institute of Labor Economics; Columbia University - School of Social Work; London School of Economics & Political Science (LSE)

Date Written: November 2002

Abstract

This paper uses data from the 1970, 1980 and 1990 Censuses to investigate the impact of welfare benefits across Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) on the incidence of single motherhood and headship for young women. A contribution of the paper is the inclusion of both MSA fixed effects and MSA-specific time trends to account for fixed and trending unmeasured factors that could influence both welfare benefit levels and family formation. In such a model, we find no effect of welfare benefits on single motherhood for whites or blacks, and a positive effect of welfare benefits on single headship only for blacks.

Suggested Citation

Blau, Francine D. and Kahn, Lawrence M. and Waldfogel, Jane, The Impact of Welfare Benefits on Single Motherhood and Headship of Young Women: Evidence from the Census (November 2002). NBER Working Paper No. w9338, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=351430

Francine D. Blau (Contact Author)

Cornell University - Department of Economics ( email )

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HOME PAGE: http://www.ilr.cornell.edu/directory/fdb4/

National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

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CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute for Economic Research)

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IZA Institute of Labor Economics ( email )

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German Institute for Economic Research (DIW Berlin) ( email )

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Lawrence M. Kahn

Cornell University - School of Industrial and Labor Relations ( email )

265 Ives Hall
Ithaca, NY 14853-3901
United States
607-255-0510 (Phone)
607-255-4496 (Fax)

CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute for Economic Research)

Poschinger Str. 5
Munich, DE-81679
Germany

IZA Institute of Labor Economics

P.O. Box 7240
Bonn, D-53072
Germany

Jane Waldfogel

IZA Institute of Labor Economics ( email )

Columbia University - School of Social Work ( email )

622 W. 113th Street
New York, NY 10025
United States

London School of Economics & Political Science (LSE) ( email )

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