Effects of Maternal Smoking on Childhood Achievement: A Siblings Approach

Abstract

Smoking is a behavior that is known to be detrimental to one’s health. In fact, studies have shown that smoking also negatively affects individuals inhaling the smoke secondhand and infants in the womb. This thesis attempts to evaluate the effects of prenatal smoking on childhood outcomes for siblings. The National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 (NLSY79) and the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth Children and Young Adults (NLSY79 Child and Young Adults) are used. Peabody Individual Achievement Tests (PIAT) in mathematics, reading recognition, and reading comprehension are analyzed. In addition, child behavior is investigated using the Behavioral Problems Index (BPI). To see if the outcomes persist as the child grows up, two specific age groups, elementary and middle school years, are evaluated. The approach this thesis takes is to study the effects of prenatal smoking at the sibling-level, taking mothers as fixed. Results show that smoking has an effect on behavioral scores of children in both elementary and middle school years. However, PIAT outcomes for specific age groups expressed causal relationships only when children were separated by gender and race.