Divorce, Fertility and the Shot Gun Marriage

Alesina, Alberto F.; Giuliano, Paola

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Divorce, Fertility and the Shot Gun Marriage

NBER Working Paper No. w12375

36 Pages Posted: 26 Jul 2006 Last revised: 26 Oct 2022

See all articles by Alberto F. Alesina

Alberto F. Alesina

Harvard University - Department of Economics; Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR); National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

Paola Giuliano

University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) - Anderson School of Management; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER); Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR); IZA Institute of Labor Economics

There are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: July 2006

Abstract

Total fertility declined in states that introduced unilateral divorce, which makes dissolution of marriage easier. Also the ratio of out-of-wedlock fertility over total declined. We suggest an explanation (and provide supportive evidence for it) based upon the effect of divorce laws on the probability of entering and exiting marriage. Women planning to have children marry more easily with an easier "exit option" from marriage. Thus, more children are born in the first years of marriage, while the total marital fertility does not change, probably as a result of an increase in divorces and marital instability.

Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

Alesina, Alberto F. and Giuliano, Paola, Divorce, Fertility and the Shot Gun Marriage (July 2006). NBER Working Paper No. w12375, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=918973