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The economics of parenting

Author

Listed:
  • Matthias Doepke
  • Giuseppe Sorrenti
  • Fabrizio Zilibotti
Abstract
Parenting decisions are among the most consequential choices people make throughout their lives. Starting with the work of pioneers such as Gary Becker, economists have used the toolset of their discipline to understand what parents do and how parents’ actions affect their children. In recent years, the literature on parenting within economics has increasingly leveraged findings and concepts from related disciplines that also deal with parent-child interactions. For example, economists have developed models to understand the choice between various parenting styles that were first explored in the developmental psychology literature, and have estimated detailed empirical models of children’s accumulation of cognitive and noncognitive skills in response to parental and other inputs. In this paper, we survey the economic literature on parenting and point out promising directions for future research.

Suggested Citation

  • Matthias Doepke & Giuseppe Sorrenti & Fabrizio Zilibotti, 2019. "The economics of parenting," ECON - Working Papers 317, Department of Economics - University of Zurich.
    • Handle: RePEc:zur:econwp:317
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Parenting; parenting style; skill acquisition; peer effects; altruism; paternalism;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • R20 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Household Analysis - - - General

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