The Effect of a Miscarriage on Mental Health, Labour Market, and Family Outcomes

Tinbergen Institute Discussion Paper 2022-027/V

58 Pages Posted: 26 Apr 2022

See all articles by Sara Rellstab

Sara Rellstab

Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR)

Pieter Bakx

Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR)

Pilar Garcia-Gomez

Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR) - Erasmus School of Economics (ESE)

Date Written: March 29, 2022

Abstract

We investigate the effect of a miscarriage on mental health care use, labour market and family outcomes of women and their partners using Dutch linked administrative data. Miscarriages are common and largely random conditional on age. We estimate event study models using women with a completed pregnancy as a control group. A first miscarriage increases women’s use of mental health therapy compared to the control group. These effects disappear over time. Partners are equally likely to use any mental health care as the control group. There are differences in labour market outcomes and probability of living together.

Note:
Funding Information: The authors have no funding to declare.

Declaration of Interests: The authors have no conflict of interest.

Ethics Approval Statement: Not applicable. This is not medical research and participants are not subject to procedures or rules of behaviour. We use observational data collected for other purposes.

Keywords: Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Mental health care, Labour market, Couples

JEL Classification: J13, J16, I1

Suggested Citation

Rellstab, Sara and Bakx, Pieter and Garcia Gomez, Pilar, The Effect of a Miscarriage on Mental Health, Labour Market, and Family Outcomes (March 29, 2022). Tinbergen Institute Discussion Paper 2022-027/V, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4075881 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4075881

Sara Rellstab (Contact Author)

Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR) ( email )

Burgemeester Oudlaan 50
3000 DR Rotterdam, Zuid-Holland 3062PA
Netherlands

Pieter Bakx

Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR) ( email )

Zuid-Holland
Netherlands

Pilar Garcia Gomez

Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR) - Erasmus School of Economics (ESE) ( email )

P.O. Box 1738
3000 DR Rotterdam, NL 3062 PA
Netherlands

Do you have a job opening that you would like to promote on SSRN?

Paper statistics

Downloads
140
Abstract Views
404
Rank
315,647
PlumX Metrics