Family Ruptures, Stress, and the Mental Health of the Next Generation
研究发现，胎儿期暴露于母亲因家庭破裂产生的压力，会增加儿童期服用多动症药物及成年后服用抗焦虑和抗抑郁药物的概率，并导致不良出生结局和围产期并发症。
This paper studies how in utero exposure to maternal stress from family ruptures affects later mental health. We find that prenatal exposure to the death of a maternal relative increases take-up of ADHD medications during childhood and anti-anxiety and depression medications in adulthood. Further, family ruptures during pregnancy depress birth outcomes and raise the risk of perinatal complications necessitating hospitalization. Our results suggest large welfare gains from preventing fetal stress from family ruptures and possibly from economically induced stressors such as unemployment. They further suggest that greater stress exposure among the poor may partially explain the intergenerational persistence of poverty.