Children and life-cycle consumption

Artikel

This paper investigates the role of children in explaining the life-cycle pattern of consumption (which is hump-shaped since it is higher in the middle of life and lower at the beginning and end of life). Unlike previous studies, a true panel of U.K. households was exploited to investigate whether currently childless households that anticipate having children behave differently from similar households that do not anticipate children. Spending for each group at different ages was estimated using a simple kernel regression. The paper finds that those households that anticipate children, when compared to households that do not anticipate children, do not seem to significantly reduce total spending before having children, nor do they significantly increase total spending after children arrive. Hence, children do not seem to fully explain the hump shape of consumption over the life-cycle.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Journal: Journal of Risk and Financial Management ; ISSN: 1911-8074 ; Volume: 15 ; Year: 2022 ; Issue: 2 ; Pages: 1-28 ; Basel: MDPI

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis ; Micro-Based Behavioral Economics: Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making‡ ; Demographic Economics: General
• Subject: life-cycle consumption ; children

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Grant, Charles B.
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): MDPI
• (where): Basel
• (when): 2022

Further information

• DOI: doi:10.3390/jrfm15020042
• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/258766
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:41 AM CET