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α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count
Using panel data covering 180 countries over six decades, this paper shows that recessions are systematically associated with higher mortality rates in poorer countries. During years when GDP falls, death rates, in particular child mortality rates, rise in emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs), while they remain unaffected or even fall in advanced economies. We further find that the scarring effects of recessions in EMDEs persist for several years and that deeper recessions lead to larger increases in mortality.