We examine the effect of screen-based activities on obesity and mental well-being for children, exploiting exogenous variation in the entry date of the digital television transition in the UK. The digital transition increased the number of available free television channels from 5 to 40, leading to an increase in television viewing time. Our results show that one additional year with access to digital television signal increases BMI z-scores by 0.159 standard deviations and the mental health total difficulties score by 2.13% among children. Underlying the net effects appears to be a decrease in physical activity among children, while neither eating habits nor personal views about self-appearance seem to play a significant role.

This paper exploits exogenous variation in the date of transition from analogue to digital television signal in the UK across more than 40,000 geographical units to investigate the causal impact of television on employment probabilities and potential mechanisms. Using a large individual panel survey dataset and a difference-in-differences model that compares the outcomes of adults living in regions where the switchover occurred in different years, I find that the digital transition increases employment probabilities. The impact is driven by mothers and is due to an increase in part-time and self-employment. The effect increases with the number of children in a household and when the parent does not cohabit with a partner. A possible explanation for these results is that television keeps children busy, reducing the amount of housework that parents need to do and allowing them to focus on their careers. I test whether the digital transition reduces the time that individuals dedicate to housework and show that this is the case for mothers but not for fathers and non-parents. I find no effect on time allocation other than via housework.

This paper explores gender differences in the career paths of immigrant and native parents before and after childbirth using Spanish administrative data and an event study specification. I find an important gender pay gap emerging after childbirth for both immigrants and natives, but immigrants suffer from a higher loss in earnings than natives. I show important native-immigrant differences in potential drivers behind the gender pay gap. After childbirth, mothers reduce their labour participation and are more often unemployed, part-time and temporary employed than fathers. The gender gaps in labour participation and part-time work are higher for natives, while the gender gaps in unemployment and permanent employment for immigrants. Finally, I investigate whether the deterioration of mothers' career originates from workers' or employers' decisions. After childbirth, mothers quit their job less, but temporarily stop working and are dismissed more than fathers. The gender gap in temporary leaves is higher for natives, while the gender gap in dismissals for immigrants.

No abstract

No abstract