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dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1951/55556
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11401/72613
dc.description.sponsorshipThis work is sponsored by the Stony Brook University Graduate School in compliance with the requirements for completion of degree.en_US
dc.formatMonograph
dc.format.mediumElectronic Resourceen_US
dc.language.isoen_US
dc.publisherThe Graduate School, Stony Brook University: Stony Brook, NY.
dc.typeDissertation
dcterms.abstractThe past few decades have seen an incredible increase in the use of panel data to answer micro level questions in a variety of settings. This new longitudinal data has allowed economists to empirically explore many theoretical economic models. One area that has not been as extensively explored is the economics of fertility expectations. This paper uses data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 (NLSY79) to explore the fertility expectations of a cohort of women who were 14 to 21 years old in 1979.We begin by investigating the impact of changes in the woman's socioeconomic status on the probability that she changes her fertility expectations. While the majority of our predictions are supported by our analysis, divorcing or separating from a spouse yield contradictory results. We also found counterintuitive impacts of losing self health insurance purchased through any source other than a current employer and losing health insurance for a child.We continue by analyzing which factors influence fertility expectation. We find that the majority of the observable variables representing a woman's background characteristics and her current socioeconomic status (marital status and education) have significant effect on her fertility expectations, both in statistical significance and magnitude. Additionally these effects are largely consistent with generally held beliefs.Next we test whether women are operating under a model of pure rationality or a model of rationality with learning. We fail to accept that the model the NLSY79 women use to form their fertility expectations is consistent with the rational expectations (RE) hypothesis. Our results provide support for the theory that women form their fertility expectations under a model of rationality with learning. Although our results are mostly consistent with our predictions, experiencing a change in the source of your own or your child's health insurance yields contradictory results. Understanding how women form and change their fertility expectations is important for many aspects of economics. Demographers who use fertility expectations to make future population predictions and economists who model a woman's simultaneous or sequential decisions of how many children to have and the quantity of market labor to supply will benefit from a better understanding of the fertility expectations of women.
dcterms.available2012-05-15T18:05:10Z
dcterms.available2015-04-24T14:52:51Z
dcterms.contributorDwyer, Debra S.en_US
dcterms.contributorJohn A. Rizzoen_US
dcterms.contributorMark R. Montgomeryen_US
dcterms.contributorAnja Decressin.en_US
dcterms.creatorMoore, Miranda Annette
dcterms.dateAccepted2012-05-15T18:05:10Z
dcterms.dateAccepted2015-04-24T14:52:51Z
dcterms.dateSubmitted2012-05-15T18:05:10Z
dcterms.dateSubmitted2015-04-24T14:52:51Z
dcterms.descriptionDepartment of Economicsen_US
dcterms.formatMonograph
dcterms.formatApplication/PDFen_US
dcterms.identifierMoore_grad.sunysb_0771E_10353.pdfen_US
dcterms.identifierhttp://hdl.handle.net/1951/55556
dcterms.identifierhttp://hdl.handle.net/11401/72613
dcterms.issued2010-12-01
dcterms.languageen_US
dcterms.provenanceMade available in DSpace on 2012-05-15T18:05:10Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Moore_grad.sunysb_0771E_10353.pdf: 625407 bytes, checksum: 04a83c49b8d30de6411a5563c16fc5a8 (MD5) Previous issue date: 1en
dcterms.provenanceMade available in DSpace on 2015-04-24T14:52:51Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 3 Moore_grad.sunysb_0771E_10353.pdf.jpg: 1894 bytes, checksum: a6009c46e6ec8251b348085684cba80d (MD5) Moore_grad.sunysb_0771E_10353.pdf.txt: 289074 bytes, checksum: cbfcf958e4520e7034436f8d1fcd8b89 (MD5) Moore_grad.sunysb_0771E_10353.pdf: 625407 bytes, checksum: 04a83c49b8d30de6411a5563c16fc5a8 (MD5) Previous issue date: 1en
dcterms.publisherThe Graduate School, Stony Brook University: Stony Brook, NY.
dcterms.subjectEconomics -- Demography
dcterms.subjectdemography, evolving fertility, expectations, fertility, learning, Rational Expectations
dcterms.titleExploring Fertility Expectations
dcterms.typeDissertation


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