Singleton study on disability, earnings and divorce published in Journal of Human Resources

Insult to Injury: Disability, Earnings, and Divorce

Perry Singleton

Journal of Human Resources, September 2012

Perry Singleton

Economics Department

Center for Policy Research

Parenting & Family

Journal of Human Resources

Close-up portrait of a smiling person with short black hair, wearing a gray shirt.

Perry Singleton

This study measures the longitudinal effect of disability on earnings, marriage, and divorce. The data come from the Survey of Income and Program Participation matched to administrative data on longitudinal earnings. Using event-study methods, the results show that the onset of a work-preventing disability is associated with a precipitous decline in earnings and an increase in divorce. Consistent with theory, the association between disability and divorce is greatest among young and educated males who experience a work-preventing, rather than a work-limiting, disability.