Risk, Financial Markets, and Human Capital in a Developing Country
利用印度农村面板数据，研究家庭收入季节性波动对儿童入学率的影响，发现入学率的季节性变化是一种自我保险机制，但平均而言并未导致人力资本显著损失。
This paper explores the link between financial market incompleteness and human capital accumulation. We examine how child school attendance responds to seasonal fluctuations in the income of agrarian households using panel data from rural India. To pinpoint market imperfections, we study responses to aggregate and idiosyncratic, as well as to anticipated and unanticipated, income shocks. Our main finding is that seasonal fluctuations in school attendance are a form of self-insurance, but one which does not result in a substantial loss of human capital on average.