ABSTRACT
This chapter explores what happens when women improve their relative economic power in the household. It also explores mechanisms through which maternal work for earnings could positively aid children's well-being. The chapter tests the hypothesis that the more committed a father is to the welfare of his children, the greater the physical growth of those children will be. It compares the relative importance of the mother's income and the father's income for the anthropometric status of children in two settings that differ in terms of marital unions and amount of paternal support. In one—Managua, Nicaragua—the proportion of women in unions is low, as is paternal support; in the other—periurban Guatemala—there is a higher percentage both of couples who reside together and of paternal support. Successful strategies for improving child welfare not only must provide opportunities for both men and women to work but also must encourage a pattern of paternal commitment to children.
