Analia Schlosser

Multiple Experiments for the Causal Link between the Quantity and Quality of Children

This article presents evidence on the child-quantity/child-quality trade-off using quasi-experimental variation due to twin births and preferences for a mixed sibling sex composition, as well as ethnic differences in the effects of these variables. Our sample includes groups with very high fertility. An innovation in our econometric approach is the juxtaposition of results from multiple instrumental variables strategies, capturing the effects of fertility over different ranges for different sorts of people. To increase precision, we develop an estimator that combines different instrument sets across partially overlapping parity-specific subsamples. Our results are remarkably consistent in showing no evidence of a quantity-quality trade-off.

Inside the Black Box of Ability Peer Effects: Evidence from Variation in the Proportion of Low Achievers in the Classroom

We estimate the extent of ability peer effects and explore the mechanisms through which they operate. Using within-school variation in the proportion of low-ability students in Israeli schools, we find that the proportion of low-ability peers has a negative effect on the performance of regular students. An exploration of the underlying mechanisms show that, relative to regular students, low-ability students report higher levels of satisfaction with their teachers. However, a higher proportion of low-ability students has detrimental effects on teachers’ pedagogical practices and on the quality of inter-student and student–teacher relationships, and increases the level of violence and classroom disruptions.

Targeted Remedial Education for Underperforming Teenagers: Costs and Benefits

This study evaluates the short‐term effects of a remedial education program that provided additional instruction to underperforming high school students in Israel. The intervention prepared students for the matriculation exams. Using a comparison group of schools that enrolled in the program later and implementing a difference‐in‐differences estimation strategy, we found that the program raised the school mean matriculation rate by 3.3 percentage points. This gain reflects an effect on targeted participants and the absence of externalities on their untreated peers. The program was found to be less cost effective than two alternative interventions based on incentives for teachers and students.

Prenatal Sex Selection and Girls' Well-Being: Evidence from India

We study the impacts of prenatal sex selection on girls’ well‐being in India. We show that high sex ratios at birth reflect the practice of prenatal sex selection and apply a triple difference strategy to examine whether changes in health outcomes of girls relative to boys within states and over time are systematically associated with changes in sex‐ratios at birth. We find that an increase in prenatal sex selection leads to a reduction in girls’ malnutrition, in particular, underweight and wasting. We further explore various underlying channels linking between prenatal sex selection and girls’ outcomes.