Learning from a Bitter Past? Behavioral Effect of Child’s Death on Mothers

Ryoko Sato, University of Michigan

Using Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) from 26 African countries, I argue that experiencing a child’s death during its infant period is a driving force which makes mothers seek health behaviors for their subsequent children, specifically delivery assistances and delivery at some health facility. Mothers who experienced the first child’s death are 3 percentage points more likely to deliver the second child at some health facility and they are 0.8 percentage point more likely to deliver with some assistance than mothers who did not experience the first child’s death.