Publication Type

Journal Article

Version

acceptedVersion

Publication Date

10-2025

Abstract

Understanding women’s physical and mental well-being following childbirth is critical for informing policies on labor market equity, family support, and fertility. Using event study methods and panel data from China, we document a persistent motherhood penalty in both physical and mental health, whereas the health impacts on fathers are minimal. While mothers experience a temporary reduction in paid work hours, they face a sustained increase in unpaid domestic labor — housework and childcare — resulting in a net increase in total work time. This additional workload likely contributes to deterioration in health. Mothers are also more likely to engage in multitasking, which is associated with elevated stress and burden, and they experience a greater increase in insufficient sleep (fewer than 7 hour per night) during the first postpartum year. Finally, we find that grandparental support can help mitigate the adverse health effects associated with motherhood.

Keywords

Motherhood penalty, Health status, Labor supply, Domestic work, Childcare

Discipline

Asian Studies | Family, Life Course, and Society | Health Economics

Research Areas

Applied Microeconomics

Publication

Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization

Volume

238

First Page

1

Last Page

19

ISSN

0167-2681

Identifier

10.1016/j.jebo.2025.107241

Publisher

Elsevier

Copyright Owner and License

Authors

Additional URL

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jebo.2025.107241

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