Preschool and Maternal Labor Market Outcomes: Evidence from a Regression Discontinuity Design
利用阿根廷入学年龄规则造成的断点，发现家中最小孩子上幼儿园能显著提高母亲全职就业概率和工作时长，但对非最小孩子无此效果。
In developing countries, employment rates for mothers with young children are relatively low. This study analyzes how maternal labor market outcomes in Argentina are affected by the preschool attendance of their children. Using pooled household surveys, we show that 4-year-olds with birthdays on June 30 have sharply higher probabilities of preschool attendance than children born on July 1, given enrollment-age rules. Regression-discontinuity estimates using this variation suggest that preschool attendance of the youngest child in the household increases the probability of full-time employment and weekly hours of maternal employment. We find no effect of preschool attendance on maternal labor outcomes for children who are not the youngest in the household.