While descriptive evidence suggests that deployment in the Global War on Terrorism is associated with adverse mental health, the causal effect of combat is not well established. Using data drawn from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, we exploit exogenous variation in...

Several high-profile news stories have linked post-September 11 (9/11) combat service to violent crime among veterans. Nevertheless, there is scant causal evidence for this claim. We exploit the administrative procedures by which U.S. Armed Forces senior commanders conditionally randomly assign...

In the U.S., nearly 11% of school-age children have been diagnosed with ADHD, and approximately 10% of children suffer from asthma. In the last decade, the number of children diagnosed with these conditions has inexplicably been on the rise. This increase has been concentrated in the Medicaid...

Although mental disorders are common among children, we know little about their long term effects on child outcomes. This paper examines U.S. and Canadian children with symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), depression, conduct disorders, and other behavioral problems. Our...

One in five U.S. youngsters has a mental disorder, but we know little about the effects of these disorders on outcomes. We examine U.S. and Canadian children with symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), the most common child mental health problem. Our innovations include the...

Mental health disorders are a leading cause of disability worldwide. Many mental health disorders start in adolescence and appropriate treatment at the outset has the potential to improve trajectories. But what is appropriate treatment? We use a large national data base of insurance claims to...

We examine differences in the prescribing of psychiatric medications to low-income and higher-income children in the Canadian province of Ontario. The analysis takes advantage of an expansion to universal public drug coverage followed by a contraction in access, coupled with rich administrative...