Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/64644 
Year of Publication: 
2010
Series/Report no.: 
cemmap working paper No. CWP03/10
Publisher: 
Centre for Microdata Methods and Practice (cemmap), London
Abstract: 
The use of genetic markers as instrumental variables (IV) is receiving increasing attention from economists. This paper examines the conditions that need to be met for genetic variants to be used as instruments. We combine the IV literature with that from genetic epidemiology, with an application to child adiposity (fat mass, determined by a dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scan) and academic performance. OLS results indicate that leaner children perform slightly better in school tests compared to their more adipose counterparts, but the IV findings show no evidence that fat mass affects academic outcomes.
Subjects: 
Instrumental Variables
Mendelian Randomization
Genetic Variant
Potential Outcomes
Academic Performance
Educational Attainment
Adiposity
Fat mass
Body Mass Index
ALSPAC
JEL: 
I1
I2
J24
Persistent Identifier of the first edition: 
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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