Married and poorly educated: the effects of child marriage on educational performance

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1590/1980-53575432avmg

Keywords:

Child Marriage, Education, Instrumental Variable

Abstract

We investigated how child marriage affects educational outcomes for Brazilian girls. In particular, using the 2010 Demographic Census, we estimate the effects of female child marriage on both the probabilities of age-grade distortion and dropout. To address the potential endogeneity, we used an instrumental variable that explores the peer effect among girls from the same city. The use of such an instrument is justified through a model that uses the modern literature of Global Games. Our results show that such unions have negative effects on girls’ education, with the greatest impact occurring on distortion. In addition, by proposing stratification according to maternity, age group and skin color, we provide an indication of which groups should be the focus of interventions that aim at combating not only the practice of child marriage, but also its repercussions on education.

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Published

30-09-2024

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Section

Articles

How to Cite

Vasconcelos, A. M., & Griebeler, M. de C. (2024). Married and poorly educated: the effects of child marriage on educational performance. Estudos Econômicos (São Paulo), 54(3), 1-36. https://doi.org/10.1590/1980-53575432avmg