童年生存: 将儿童带离家庭的影响
Surviving Childhood: Effects of Removing a Child From Home
Review of Economic Studies · 2025 · [{"name": "Ronja Helénsdotter", "affiliation": ["Massachusetts Institute of Technology", "University of Gothenburg"]}]
中文摘要
摘要 本文研究法院下令将儿童带离家庭对其健康、犯罪和教育的影响。为分离因果效应，我在工具变量设计中利用法官分配的准随机变异，以及不同法官在倾向于支持带离方面的差异。基于一个新数据集（N=26,579）——该数据集由我转录的瑞典法院文件构建，并与详细的登记数据相链接——我发现，法院下令的家庭外安置对边际儿童的死亡率具有很大的不利影响。这些影响主要由被带离儿童仍处于家庭外照护期间发生的自杀所驱动。带离还导致因精神疾病住院增加以及非毒品犯罪增加。几乎没有证据表明亲生父母存在不利的健康影响。我探讨了儿童健康受损这一后果的潜在解释。不利的照护条件与同伴暴露似乎是重要的作用渠道。
Abstract
Abstract This paper studies the effects of the court-ordered removal of children from home on health, crime, and education. To isolate causal effects, I exploit quasi-random variation in judge assignment together with across-judge variation in the tendency to favour removal in an instrumental variable design. Using a novel data set (N=26,579) based on Swedish court documents that I transcribe and link with detailed register data, I find that court-ordered out-of-home placement has large adverse effects on the mortality of the marginal child. These effects are primarily driven by suicides that occur while the removed child is still placed in out-of-home care. Removal also causes an increase in hospitalizations for mental illness and non-narcotic crimes. There is little evidence of adverse health effects for birth parents. I explore potential explanations for the detrimental effects on child health. Adverse care conditions and peer exposure appear to be important channels.