The effects of maternal education and place of residence on child health in Vietnam

Maternal education plays an important role in determining child health. But the mechanisms through which it works are not fully understood and social context clearly influences the pathways, the magnitude, and even the direction of its effect. This dissertation explores three broad empirical questions using data from Vietnam: Does maternal education have a net effect on child health? Are differentials in place of residence associated with different child health outcomes? And is the effect of maternal education on child health influenced by differences in the place of residence?; I address these broad research questions by adapting the Mosley and Chen framework (1984) to fit the specific objectives of the study, the data sources, and the context of Vietnam. The 1997 Vietnam Demographic and Health Survey and selected data from the 1997 Socio-Economic Statistics Data of Provinces and Cities were linked for the analysis in this study. Logistic regression techniques were employed to estimate models.; Using the incidence of diarrhea and acute respiratory infection during two week before the survey (direct measures) and the incidence of early breastfeeding (indirect measure) as three indicators of child health, I examined the role of maternal education and place of residence in affecting child health. Additional analyses on mothers' knowledge of child illness care were used to strengthen the explanation of the role of maternal education in affecting child health.; The results of the analyses indicate that maternal education has a positive net effect on child health in all areas studied. Education enhances mothers' knowledge of childhood diseases and the ability to care for their children. Education influences child health via different mechanisms, depending on specific child health outcome of interest. Place of residence also affects child health, depending on specific health outcomes of interest. No significant interaction is found between maternal education and place of residence for child diarrhea and ARI, but the interaction is significant for early breastfeeding.; Other related factors, such as child's age and sex, mother's age and parity, and especially childcare arrangements in the household, also help predict child health. Policy implications are discussed and specific further investigations are recommended.