Abortion and Selection
研究1970年代初堕胎合法化如何通过选择机制改变年轻成年人的结果，如提高大学毕业率、降低福利依赖和单亲概率。
Abortion legalization in the early 1970s led to dramatic changes in fertility. Some research has suggested that it altered cohort outcomes, but this literature has been limited and controversial. In this paper, we provide a framework for understanding selection mechanisms and use that framework to both address inconsistent past methodological approaches and provide evidence on the long-run impact on cohort characteristics. Our results indicate that lower-cost abortion brought about by legalization altered young adult outcomes through selection. In particular, it increased likelihood of college graduation, lower rates of welfare use, and lower odds of being a single parent. Copyright by the President and Fellows of Harvard College and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.