Happy People Have Children: Choice and Self-Selection into Parenthood

Sophie Cetre (1) , Andrew E. Clark (1, 2) , Claudia Senik (3, 1, 2)

1 PSE - Paris School of Economics
2 PSE - Paris-Jourdan Sciences Economiques
3 UP4 - Université Paris-Sorbonne

There is mixed evidence in the existing literature on whether children are associated with greater subjective well-being, with the correlation depending on which countries and populations are considered. We here provide a systematic analysis of this question based on three different datasets: two cross-national and one national panel. We show that the association between children and subjective well-being is positive only in developed countries, and for those who become parents after the age of 30 and who have higher income. We also provide evidence of a positive selection into parenthood, whereby happier individuals are more likely to have children.

Mots clés: Happiness; Fertility; Children; Income; Selection

Domaines: Economies et finances

Sophie Cetre, Andrew E. Clark, Claudia Senik. Happy People Have Children: Choice and Self-Selection into Parenthood. European Journal of Population, 2016, 32 (3), pp.445 - 473. ⟨10.1007/s10680-016-9389-x⟩. ⟨halshs-01383781⟩