The paper analyzes the effect of different shocks on household decisions concerning
children’s involvement in work and school in rural Cambodia. We assess the differential
impact of three different types of shocks using propensity score matching and double
difference estimates extended to the case of multiple treatments. The findings indicate that
household responses to shocks depend considerably on the specific type of shock
encounterered. Of the three shocks considered, crop failure is the most damaging in terms
of school attendance and child labour in the Cambodian context. Droughts appear far less
relevant, while flooding does not seem to have any significant impact on children’s work
and school attendance. The findings argue for the targeting of risk management policies to
the specific types of shocks most damaging to children.