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Research ArticleArticles

Early-life Exposure to the Great Depression and Long-term Health and Economic Outcomes

Valentina Duque and Lauren L. Schmitz
Published online before print July 06, 2023, 0421-11584R1; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3368/jhr.0421-11584R1
Valentina Duque
Valentina Duque is an assistant professor of public affairs in the School of Public Affairs at American University.
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Lauren L. Schmitz
Lauren L. Schmitz is an assistant professor of public affairs in the Robert M. La Follette School of Public Affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison ().
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Abstract

Using state-year-level variation from the Great Depression we show that adverse economic conditions experienced in early life are associated with worse labor market outcomes in prime-age years and worse economic wellbeing, morbidity, and mortality at older ages. These effects become more pronounced as surviving cohort members age, suggesting disparities in the acceleration of age-related physiological damage. Using multiple data sources, we analyze potential mechanisms in childhood and midlife. After evaluating changes in fertility and mortality rates for Depression-era birth cohorts, we conclude that these effects likely represent lower bound estimates of the true impacts of the economic shock on long-term outcomes.

Keywords:
  • Great Depression
  • health
  • aging
  • human capital
  • earnings
  • retirement
JEL Classification:
  • E24
  • I1
  • I14
  • I3
  • J13
  • J26

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Journal of Human Resources: 60 (3)
Journal of Human Resources
Vol. 60, Issue 3
1 May 2025
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Early-life Exposure to the Great Depression and Long-term Health and Economic Outcomes
Valentina Duque, Lauren L. Schmitz
Journal of Human Resources Jul 2023, 0421-11584R1; DOI: 10.3368/jhr.0421-11584R1

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Early-life Exposure to the Great Depression and Long-term Health and Economic Outcomes
Valentina Duque, Lauren L. Schmitz
Journal of Human Resources Jul 2023, 0421-11584R1; DOI: 10.3368/jhr.0421-11584R1
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Keywords

  • Great Depression
  • health
  • aging
  • human capital
  • earnings
  • retirement
  • E24
  • I1
  • I14
  • I3
  • J13
  • J26
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