Analyzing health impacts of high-profile acts of violence and information disclosure
Description
I present three essays in health economics. In the first, I use individual-level data to explore whether exposure to high-profile acts of violence have an effect on individual behavior. I find that being within 500 miles shortly after a mass shooting, physical activity levels decrease 1.3 percent. The effects are higher for women and individuals between 15 and 29 years. I also find a negative effect on frequent mental distress and hours worked shortly after a mass shooting. Results show that individuals spend more minutes at home and less in public places as a response to indirect exposure to mass shootings. These results provide evidence that aside from direct victims, mass shootings also impact the short-term behavior of a broader set of individuals. In the second, I examine the effect of calorie labeling on obesity and potential mechanisms. I find that calorie count disclosure reduced the obesity rate by 2.3 percentage points. I show that the mandate increased the overall activity level of individuals (measured using metabolic equivalents of task) by 1.1 percent which is equivalent to a 13.1 calorie expenditure increase. In the third, investigate the effect of calorie labeling on health behavior and outcomes for pregnant women. Using natality records and employing a difference-in-differences strategy, I find a 4.1 percent decline in maternal weight gain during pregnancy. Excessive weight gain (i.e. more than 15 kg) during pregnancy also decreases, especially among minorities and relatively younger mothers. I find statistically significant and economically meaningful declines in the prevalence of pregnancy-associated hypertension, post-term pregnancies and fetal macrosomia.