Date of Award
Summer 8-1-2025
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
Economics
First Advisor
Dr. Partha Deb
Second Advisor
Dr. Karna Basu
Academic Program Adviser
Dr. Karna Basu
Abstract
This study estimates the causal transmission of health from mothers to their children. Intergenerational associations in health and other human capital outcomes are well established, but those associations may not be causal due to common unobserved factors between a mother and her child. This study employs two-stage least squares, using weather variation as an instrument, to causally identify the relationship between maternal health and child health outcomes in five dimensions: height-for-age, self-reported health, blood pressure, lung capacity, and hemoglobin levels. The data are from the Indonesian Family Life Survey (1993--2014), a longitudinal survey that provides a 21-year look into the health of mothers and their children. The results reveal strong causal relations across generations for height-for-age, self-reported health, and blood pressure. On the other hand, lung capacity and hemoglobin are weakly linked to maternal health.
Recommended Citation
Khan, Fatima, "Intergenerational Transmission of Health: Evidence from Indonesia" (2025). CUNY Academic Works.
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/hc_sas_etds/1411
