Adolescents who drink or smoke marijuana are more likely to engage in delinquent activities than their peers who do not use substances, but it is not clear whether this association is causal or driven by other difficult-to-measure underlying factors such as an individual's discount rate. Using...

Previous researchers have noted that the positive correlation between substance use and sexual behavior is stronger for white adolescents than for their black and Hispanic counterparts. Using an instrumental variables approach to control for the possible endogeneity of substance use, and data...

Argys, L.M., Rees, D.I., Averett S.L., & Witoonchart, B. (2006). Birth order and risky adolescent behavior. Economic Inquiry, 44(2), 215-233 demonstrated that a strong link exists between birth order and adolescent risky behavior. Using data on 10th graders from the National Education...

Even before the 1996 overhaul of the U.S. welfare system, a number of states had ended the practice of paying extra benefits to families who have additional children while receiving welfare. Proponents believe that this reform can reduce births to recipients, however many worry that it may...

It is commonly believed that birth order is an important determinant of success. However, previous studies in this area have failed to provide convincing evidence that birth order is related to test scores, education, or earnings. Using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth--1979,...