Abstract
This paper examines the interrelationship between fosterage, school attendance, and children’s employment in Ghana. Using the 1991/1992 Living Standards Survey data on children aged 7–17 years and a trivariate probit model, the paper demonstrates that ignoring the linkages between these outcomes leads to downward-biased estimates of the impact of fosterage on schooling and upward-biased estimates of the impact of fosterage on work. Gender and age are important considerations in family decisions regarding children’s activities. Joint decision-making is more common for girls aged 12–17 than for boys of a similar age. A significant negative correlation is also observed between the likelihood of employment and the likelihood of school attendance among adolescent girls.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
M. Ainsworth (1996) ArticleTitleEconomic aspects of child fostering in Cote d’ Ivoire Research in Population Economics 8 25–62
A.A. Akin (1994) ArticleTitleThe socio-economic impact of child labour in Cameroon Labor, Capital and Society 27 234–248
T.S. Anh J. Knodel D. Lam J. Friedman (1998) ArticleTitleFamily size and children’s education in Vietnam Demography 35 57–70
C. Bledsoe U. Isiugo-Abanihe (1989) Strategies of child-fosterage among Mende grannies in Sierra Leone Lesthaeghe (Eds) Reproduction and social organization in sub-Saharan Africa University of California Press Berkeley, CA 442–474
C. Bledsoe (1991) ArticleTitle‘No success without struggle’: Social mobility and hardship for foster children in Sierra Leone Man 25 70–88
C. Bledsoe (1993) The politics of polygyny in Mende education and child fosterage transactions B.D. Miller (Eds) Sex and gender hierarchies University of Chicago Press Chicago, IL 170–192
Boateng, E.O., Ewusi, K., Kanbur, R. & McKay, A. (1990). A poverty profile of Ghana, 1987–88. Social Dimensions of Adjustment in Sub-Saharan Africa, Working Paper No. 5. Washington, DC: The World Bank.
C. Buchmann (2000) ArticleTitleFamily structure, parental perceptions, and child labor in Kenya: What factors determine who is enrolled in school? Social Forces 78 1349–1378
Canagarajah, S. & Coulombe H. (1997). Child labor and schooling in Ghana. World Bank Policy Research Working Paper No. 1844. Washington DC: The World Bank.
D. Chernichovsky (1985) ArticleTitleSocioeconomic and demographic aspects of school enrollment and attendance in rural Botswana Economic Development and Cultural Change 33 319–332 Occurrence Handle10.1086/451463
M. Csapo (1981) ArticleTitleReligious, social and economic factors hindering the education of girls in northern Nigeria Comparative Education Review 36 446–466
B. Fuller D. Singer M. Keily (1995) ArticleTitleWhy do daughters leave school in southern Africa? Family economy and mothers’ commitments Social Forces 74 657–680
M. Gomes (1984) ArticleTitleFamily size and educational attainment in Kenya Population and Development Review 10 647–660
W.H. Greene (1998) LIMDEP: Version 7.0 Econometric Software, Inc New York
Grosh, M.E. & Glewwe, P. (1995). A guide to living standards measurement study surveys and their data sets. Living standards measurement study, Working Paper No. 120. Washington, DC: The World Bank.
D.K. Guilkey K.A. Bollen T.A. Mroz (1995) ArticleTitleBinary outcomes and endogenous explanatory variables: Tests and solutions with an application to the demand for contraceptive use in Tunisia Demography 32 111–131
K.A.L. Hyde (1993) Improving women’s education in sub-Saharan Africa: A review of the literature E.M. King M.A. Hill (Eds) Women’s education in developing countries: Barriers, benefits and policies Johns Hopkins University Press Baltimore, MD 100–135
B. Ingstad (1994) The grandmother and household viability in Botswana A. Adepoju C. Oppong (Eds) Gender, work and population in sub-Saharan Africa James Curry London 209–240
U.C. Isiugo-Abanihe (1994) ArticleTitleReproductive motivation and family-size preferences among Nigerian men Studies in Family Planning 25 149–161
J. Knodel M. Wongsith (1991) ArticleTitleFamily size and children’s education in Thailand: Evidence from a national sample Demography 28 119–131
C.B. Lloyd A.K. Blanc (1996) ArticleTitleChildren’s schooling in sub-Saharan Africa: The role of fathers, mothers, and others Population and Development Review 22 265–298
C. Lloyd A.J. Gage (1995) High fertility and the intergenerational transmission of gender inequality: Children’s transition to adulthood in Ghana P. Makinwa A. Jensen (Eds) Women’s position and demographic change in sub-Saharan Africa International Union for the Scientific Study of Population Liège, Belgium 127–146
C.B. Lloyd A.J. Gage-Brandon (1994) ArticleTitleHigh fertility and children’s schooling in Ghana: Sex differences in parental contributions and educational outcomes Population Studies 48 293–306 Occurrence Handle10.1080/0032472031000147806
M. Lockheed B. Fuller R. Nyirongo (1989) ArticleTitleFamily effects on students’ achievement in Thailand and Malawi Sociology of Education 62 239–255
Montgomery, M.R. & Kouamé, A. (1993). Fertility and schooling in Côte d’Ivoire: Is there a trade-off? Technical Working Paper No. 11. Washington, DC: The World Bank.
S.K. Mukhopadhyay (1994) ArticleTitleAdapting household behavior to agricultural technology in West Bengal, India: Wage labor, fertility, and child schooling determinants Economic Development and Cultural Change 43 91–103 Occurrence Handle10.1086/452137
Norton, A., Bortei-Doku Aryeetey, E., Korboe, D. & Dogbe D.K.T. (1995). Poverty assessment in Ghana using qualitative and participatory research methods. Poverty and Social Policy Discussion Paper. Washington, DC: The World Bank.
B.A. Oloko (1991) Children’s work in urban Nigeria: A case study of young Lagos street traders W.E. Myer (Eds) Protecting working children Zed Press London, England 11–23
S.L. Pong (1997) ArticleTitleSibship size and educational attainment in peninsular Malaysia: Do policies matter? Sociological Perspectives 40 227–242
B. Ravololomanga B. Schlemmer (1994) ArticleTitleDe l’enfant richesse à l’enfant fardeau: L’enfant au travail à Madagascar et sa place dans l’imaginaire social Labor, Capital and Society 27 216–232
InstitutionalAuthorNameRepublic of Ghana and United Nations Children’s Fund (1990) Children and women of Ghana: A situation analysis 1989–90 UNICEF Accra, Ghana
P. Rose (1995) ArticleTitleFemale education and adjustment programs: A cross-country statistical analysis World Development 23 IssueID11 1931–1949 Occurrence Handle10.1016/0305-750X(95)00091-P
A. Tansel (1997) ArticleTitleSchooling attainment, parental education and gender in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana Economic Development and Cultural Change 45 825–856 Occurrence Handle10.1086/452309
InstitutionalAuthorNameUNESCO (1995) Statistical yearbook 1995 UNESCO and Bernan Press Lanham, MD
InstitutionalAuthorNameUnited Nations Children’s Fund (1993) Girls and women: A UNICEF development priority UNICEF New York
M. Verlet (1994) ArticleTitleGrandir à Nima: Dérégulation domestique et mise au travail des enfants Labor, Capital and Society 27 162–190
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Gage, A. The Interrelationship between Fosterage, Schooling, and Children’s Labor Force Participation in Ghana. Popul Res Policy Rev 24, 431–466 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11113-005-4290-z
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11113-005-4290-z