The AT&T Natural Experiment: Did the iPhone Cause the Baby Bust?

This episode explores provocative research suggesting a link between the iPhone's launch and declining birth rates, utilizing a "natural experiment" based on AT&T's initial exclusive rights. Listeners will discover how the opportunity cost of time, where smartphone use displaces activities like dating and socializing, is proposed as the mechanism, with findings indicating the iPhone accounts for approximately 20% of the U.S. fertility decline between 2007 and 2018, particularly among younger women.