Alcohol and student performance: Estimating the effect of legal access

Authors

Jason M. Lindo, University of WollongongFollow
Isaac D. Swensen, University of Oregon
Glen R. Waddell, University of Oregon

RIS ID

84056

Publication Details

Lindo, J. M., Swensen, I. D. & Waddell, G. R. (2013). Alcohol and student performance: Estimating the effect of legal access. Journal of Health Economics, 32 (1), 22-32.

Abstract

We consider the effect of legal access to alcohol on student achievement. Our preferred approach identifies the effect through changes in one's performance after gaining legal access to alcohol, controlling flexibly for the expected evolution of grades as one makes progress towards their degree. We also report RD-based estimates but argue that an RD design is not well suited to the research question in our setting. We find that students' grades fall below their expected levels upon being able to drink legally, but by less than previously documented. We also show that there are effects on women and that the effects are persistent. Using the 1997 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, we show that students drink more often after legal access but do not consume more drinks on days on which they drink.