Journal article
On war intensity and schooling attainment: The case of Bosnia and Herzegovina
EL Swee
European Journal of Political Economy | ELSEVIER SCIENCE INC | Published : 2015
Abstract
This paper identifies war intensity effects of the 1992-1995 Bosnian War on schooling attainment, and explores possible channels of influence. Empirical identification relies on spatial variation in war intensity and variation in birth cohorts. I find that cohorts that endured greater war intensity are less likely to complete secondary schooling but not primary schooling. These effects are much stronger for males than for females, and draftee male cohorts experience deterioration in their physical and mental health relative to female and non-draftee cohorts, suggesting that the military draft may play an important role. Other possible mechanisms do not seem to matter.
Grants
Funding Acknowledgements
I gratefully acknowledge the provision of restricted-use data by the Bosnian Federal Office of Statistics and the Research and Documentation Center. I also thank the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) for their hospitality and assistance during my stay in Sarajevo. Mirza Besirovic and Ida Koh provided excellent research assistance. Financial support by the Centre for International Studies and the School of Graduate Studies at the University of Toronto is kindly acknowledged. Dwayne Benjamin, Gustavo Bobonis, Jeff Borland, Terence Cheng, Robert Dixon, John Freebairn, Sacha Kapoor, Milica Kecmanovic, Phil McCalman, and participants at the Fourth HiCN Annual Workshop provided helpful comments. Finally, I am grateful to the editor, Take Aidt, and two anonymous referees, for suggestions that improved the paper considerably. All remaining errors are mine.