Long-Run Impacts of Agricultural Shocks on Educational Attainment: Evidence from the Boll Weevil
利用1892-1922年棉铃象鼻虫在美国南部摧毁棉花种植的历史事件，发现儿童从高童工强度的棉花生产中转移后，4-9岁儿童的教育年限增加了0.24-0.36年，揭示了农业童工与教育成就之间的冲突。
The boll weevil spread across the South from 1892 to 1922 with devastating effect on cotton cultivation. The resulting shift away from this child labor–intensive crop lowered the opportunity cost of school attendance. We investigate the insect’s long-run effect on educational attainment using a sample of adults from the 1940 census linked back to their childhood census records. Both white and black children who were young (ages 4 to 9) when the weevil arrived saw increased educational attainment by 0.24 to 0.36 years. Our results demonstrate the potential for conflict between child labor in agriculture and educational attainment.