WAGE AND LABOR SUPPLY EFFECTS OF ILLNESS IN COTE-DIVOIRE AND GHANA - INSTRUMENTAL VARIABLE ESTIMATES FOR DAYS DISABLED

Sickness should make individuals less productive, but there are proble ms in measuring this effect. First, how is adult morbidity measured in a household survey? Second, how is the impact of morbidity on product ivity inferred, if earning is partly used to improve health? Self-repo rted functional activity limitation due to illness is considered an in dicator of morbidity for wage earners and self employed people. To dea l with both the measurement and joint determination problems, an instr umental variable estimation approach is used, where local food prices and health services instrument for disability days that reduce wages b y at least 10% and hours by 3% or more. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V.