Teen Fertility and Siblings’ Outcomes Evidence of Family Spillovers Using Matched Samples

Abstract

U.S. teen birth rates remain high relative to other industrialized countries. Despite extensive literature on teen mothers and their children, almost no research examines the effects of teen fertility on the rest of the mother’s family. I address this gap, finding that teen birth negatively affects mothers’ younger siblings. Using several matched control methods, I find that sisters of new teenage mothers experience a 3.8 percentage point decrease in test scores, a 7.6 percentage point increase in grade repetition, and a 9.3 percentage point increase high school dropout, while brothers experience a 9.2 percentage point increase in juvenile justice system exposure