As part of a broader study to assess the science base of dietary guidance for children ages 2 to 18 years, Mathematica conducted a systematic review of the literature on food and nutrient intake and weight management published in 2004-2008. This report summarizes studies published since the 2005...

Recommendations to promote healthy living, such as the <I>Dietary Guidelines for Americans</I>, are intended to translate scientific knowledge into everyday practice. This report assesses the evidence base for child-focused dietary guidance, identifying new evidence as well as topics where there are...</i>

<I>I Am Moving, I Am Learning</I> is a Head Start program enhancement for integrating obesity prevention activities into daily practices. This research brief, based on Mathematica’s interim report, documents the findings from a survey of 53 Head Start programs that participated in training in Region...</i>

Flexible work time and retirement options are a potential solution for the challenges of unemployment, aging populations, and unsustainable pensions systems around the world. Voluntary part-time workers in Europe and the US are happier, experience less stress and anger, and are more satisfied...

Does the pattern of social connections between individuals matter for macroeconomic outcomes? If so, how does this effect operate and how big is it? Using network analysis tools, we explore how different social structures affect technology diffusion and thereby a country’s rate of...

Job reallocation is considered to be a key characteristic of well-functioning labor markets, as more productive firms grow and less productive ones contract or close. However, despite its potential benefits for the economy, there are significant costs that are borne by displaced workers. We...

Research increasingly shows that differences in endowments at birth need not be genetic but instead are influenced by environmental factors while the fetus is in the womb. In addition, these differences may persist well beyond childhood. In this paper, we study one such environmental factor –...

Eleven percent of the Malawian population is HIV infected. Eighteen percent of sexual encounters are casual. A condom is used one quarter of the time. A choice-theoretic general equilibrium search model is constructed to analyze the Malawian epidemic. In the developed framework, people select...

This paper develops and estimates a model that integrates two fundamental theories of individual health behavior: the Becker-Murphy model of rational addiction and the Grossman model of health investment. We define an individual's lifetime smoking consumption pattern and investments in health...

Abstract: Analyzing the effect of family planning on child survival remains an important issue but is not straightforward because of several mechanisms linking family planning, birth intervals, total fertility, and child survival. This study uses a dynamic model jointly explaining infant...