Intergenerational Educational Mobility and Life-Course Income Trajectories in the United States

Abstract

Atheoretical formulation derived from the cumulative advantage literature, that intergenerational educational mobility has enduring life-course income effects above and beyond individuals’ education, is empirically tested. This formulation contrasts sharply with both the human capital model, which does not consider parental education as a determinant of children’s income, and the sociological research on social mobility, which mostly relies on a snapshot view to study the economic consequences of educational mobility. To test this theory, we use NLSY79 survey data (with Panel Study of Income Dynamics data serving for robustness checks). We apply growth models to the data to estimate if and how the different intergenerational educational mobility groups that are produced by the intersection of parental and respondent education shape life-course income trajectories. Results provide evidence in support of the argument that the intersection of parental and respondent education bears important long-term income consequences, mainly for men. These results, moreover, do not vary by race. We discuss the theoretical and policy implications of our results.

Life-Cycle Economic Returns to Educational Mobility in Denmark

“…Thus far, results from Israel (Gabay-Egozi and Yaish, 2019), the USA (Yaish et al, 2021) and Sweden (Hällsten and Yaish, 2021) provide findings that are consistent with the results and conclusions we made here on the basis of the Danish case, regarding the ability and limitations of the welfare state apparatus to mitigate intergenerational reproduction processes. Still, to be able to derive robust and coherent policy recommendations from these conclusions, more research is needed in other contexts and within different inequality and welfare regimes.…”

“…In other words, we find small direct effects of parents' college attainment on offspring's earnings trajectories over the life cycle. This result is similar to preliminary results from Sweden (Hällsten and Yaish, 2021), but different from corresponding estimates from Israel (Gabay-Egozi and Yaish, 2019) and the USA (Yaish et al, 2021), where patterns of cumulative advantage appear strong. One reason for these differences is the differences in welfare regimes between the Nordic countries (Sweden and Denmark), on the one hand, and the liberal ones (Israel and the USA), on the other.…”

“…The Danish institutional setup leads us to expect that intergenerational transmission of income and wealth inequity is comparatively weak. Thus, applying the four cumulative advantage mechanisms discussed in the previous section to the Danish case, we should expect to find more modest intergenerational transmission of advantages and disadvantages effects in Denmark compared to, for example, Israel and the USA (Gabay-Egozi and Yaish, 2019; Yaish et al, 2021), where the educational and labour market contexts are less egalitarian. Put differently, we expect very small if any direct effects of parental education on life course income in Denmark.…”

Beyond ‘Imagined Meritocracy’: Distinguishing the Relative Power of Education and Skills in Intergenerational Inequality

“…labour market structure and social policy). Second, longitudinal data collection and analyses are necessary, preferably with the life-course perspective (Birkelund et al, 2022; Cheng et al, 2021; Hällsten and Yaish, 2021; Yaish et al, 2021). Third, comparative studies are essential to better understand the OESD structure including its cross-national similarities and differentials.…”