Alsan Marcella, Goldin Claudia
Stanford University and the NBER.
Harvard University and the NBER.
J Polit Econ. 2019 Apr;127(2):586-638. doi: 10.1086/700766. Epub 2019 Feb 13.
We explore the first period of sustained decline in child mortality in the U.S. and provide estimates of the independent and combined effects of clean water and effective sewerage systems on under-five mortality. Our case is Massachusetts, 1880 to 1920, when authorities developed a sewerage and water district in the Boston area. We find the two interventions were complementary and together account for approximately one-third of the decline in log child mortality during the 41 years. Our findings are relevant to the developing world and suggest that a piecemeal approach to infrastructure investments is unlikely to significantly improve child health.
我们探究了美国儿童死亡率持续下降的首个阶段,并估算了清洁水源和有效排水系统对五岁以下儿童死亡率的独立影响及综合影响。我们以1880年至1920年的马萨诸塞州为例,当时当局在波士顿地区建设了一个排水和供水区。我们发现这两项干预措施相辅相成,共同促成了41年间儿童死亡率对数下降幅度的约三分之一。我们的研究结果与发展中世界相关,表明基础设施投资的零敲碎打方式不太可能显著改善儿童健康状况。