Development economics increasingly focuses on how household health conditions and caregiving responsibilities shape economic participation, particularly for heads of household. In this regard, disability is understood as a phenomenon that transcends the individual, reshaping family structures, income, and employment opportunities for those who take on caregiving roles.
A World Bank report titled “Breaking Barriers - Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in Latin America and the Caribbean” warns that failing to integrate this population widens social gaps and has direct effects on poverty and labor force participation in a region where an estimated 85 million people live with a disability.
To address these gaps, Dr. Joao García is leading a Fondecyt Iniciación project including research along two complementary lines. The first stems from the Zika virus outbreak in Brazil in 2015, which led to cases of microcephaly in newborns—a condition that causes a baby’s head to be smaller than normal—and provided an opportunity to study an unexpected scenario regarding its effects on the working lives of mothers.
“We know that, typically, when it comes to parenthood, the mother assumes a greater burden of care—mainly due to cultural, social, and economic factors that have historically assigned that role to women. With that in mind, we want to see how this disability, which increases both the workload and financial expenses, impacts their labor market participation,” explained the researcher.
This case allows us to apply what is known in economics as a “natural experiment,” in which an unplanned event enables us to observe real-world effects without researcher intervention. “No one expected the Zika outbreak, and the link between the virus and microcephaly was not previously known. This allows us to better isolate the effect,” he added.
For this analysis, Dr. García uses administrative databases from Brazil, specifically the Catastro Único, which compiles information on employment, household structure, and socioeconomic conditions.
“We’re studying this in Brazil because it allows us to analyze these phenomena using a database, and because the results can be useful for Chile and Latin America, where similar social and labor dynamics exist,” he noted.
From a public policy perspective, the research aims to provide evidence for the design of support programs for people with disabilities and their families. “Almost all countries have some form of support. Understanding how labor incentives affect these programs—especially in the case of mothers—is key to their design. Our findings can contribute to that design,” added Dr. García.
Economic Liberalization and Employment Inequalities
The second line of the project expands the analysis to examine the effects of economic competition on the labor market integration of people with disabilities, based on trade liberalization processes and structural transformations in the Brazilian economy.
The research utilizes data from Brazil spanning a period of approximately 40 years—including the 1990s, the 2000s, and the 2010s—against a backdrop of trade liberalization and increased competition associated with imports from China. The study relies primarily on census data, which are collected every ten years, allowing for the observation of long-term changes.
In this context, the researcher argues that economic competition can have differing effects depending on the group analyzed, since while it tends to improve market efficiency, it can also alter the conditions for inclusion of the most vulnerable sectors. “Greater competition can reduce certain problems of discrimination, because companies that do not discriminate have advantages,” he noted.
This study offers empirical insights to shape public policy and economic analysis, evaluating how economic competition, inequality, and caregiving conditions disproportionately affect vulnerable demographics.
Evaluating the true economic and social impact of public welfare interventions remains complex. As Dr. García notes, “It is difficult to know precisely how these types of policies influence family outcomes and what the costs associated with their implementation are. This research won’t solve everything, but we are making a contribution.”