Prenatal testing is a complicated decision for many women, forcing us to confront concerns about a disabled child and risks of miscarriage. Emily Oster Read Quote
Nausea is a normal but unpleasant effect of pregnancy and a really good sign that it is going well. Women who experience nausea in early pregnancy are less likely to miscarry. Emily Oster Read Quote
Young women who live in areas with high maternal mortality change their behavior less in response to HIV than young women who live in areas with low maternal mortality. Emily Oster Read Quote
There is some risk to increase birth defects if you do a lot of outdoor gardening when you are pregnant. That can increase rates of toxoplasmosis. Emily Oster Read Quote
I think women – relative to men – tend to feel that they have to do the household chores on top of everything else. This becomes even worse once you have kids. It’s enough to have a full time job; a full time job plus a family is even more. Emily Oster Read Quote
How much is an hour of your time worth? It’s worth whatever wage you would get if you spent that hour working. If you work for an hourly rate, this is an easy calculation. Even if you work for a salary and a fixed number of hours, the principle is the same: It’s whatever your salary works out to per hour. Emily Oster Read Quote
The basic idea that incentives can be used to motivate behavior is a powerful one. It works for employees, and it has a clear place in parenting, as anyone who has tried to potty-train a recalcitrant toddler with sticker rewards knows. Emily Oster Read Quote
The key to good decision making is evaluating the available information – the data – and combining it with your own estimates of pluses and minuses. As an economist, I do this every day. Emily Oster Read Quote
