Less for more? Cuts to child benefits, family adjustments, and long-run child outcomes in larger families
研究荷兰削减大家庭儿童福利的改革对儿童长期教育及心理健康的影响，发现对整体影响不大，但低收入家庭儿童教育受损，家庭减少育儿投资并面临更大压力。
Abstract Previous studies have examined how cash transfers affect children’s education and health regardless of sibship size. I examine the long-run consequences of a Dutch reform that gradually curtailed child-benefit payments for larger families. Based on administrative data and a regression discontinuity design, I find little evidence of average reform effects on children’s education and mental health. However, children in less well-off households exposed to the reform experience long-lasting educational penalties. Analyses of survey and admin data suggest that, if not for the reform, households would have relied more on centre-based care as opposed to maternal care. Lower parental investments in child-related goods and a more stressful environment accompanied heightened poverty risks after the reform.