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The Decline in Intergenerational Mobility in Post-Socialism: Evidence from the Bulgarian Case

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  • Hertz, Tom
  • Meurs, Mieke
  • Selcuk, Sibel

Abstract

Summary We examine changes in the statistical association between parents' and children's schooling in one post-socialist country: Bulgaria. We document its near-doubling between 1995 and 2001. For children of less-educated parents, this produced an absolute decline in average attainment. These children were educated during a period of economic depression and significant reductions in public spending, which led to school closures and shortages of materials, along with increases in out-of-pocket costs. We conclude that the economic and fiscal crisis of the 1990s led to a sharp decline in educational mobility. This may have relevance for other countries experiencing similar economic shocks.

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  • Hertz, Tom & Meurs, Mieke & Selcuk, Sibel, 2009. "The Decline in Intergenerational Mobility in Post-Socialism: Evidence from the Bulgarian Case," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 37(3), pages 739-752, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:37:y:2009:i:3:p:739-752
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    1. Tilman Brück & Damir Esenaliev, 2018. "Post†socialist transition and intergenerational educational mobility in Kyrgyzstan," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 26(1), pages 61-89, January.
    2. Nicolas Fleury & Fabrice Gilles, 2015. "A meta-regression analysis on intergenerational transmission of education: publication bias and genuine empirical effect," TEPP Working Paper 2015-02, TEPP.
    3. Binzel, Christine & Carvalho, Jean-Paul, 2013. "Education, Social Mobility and Religious Movements: A Theory of the Islamic Revival in Egypt," IZA Discussion Papers 7259, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    4. Ehsan Latif, 2017. "The Relationship between Intergenerational Educational Mobility and Public Spending: Evidence from Canada," Economic Papers, The Economic Society of Australia, vol. 36(3), pages 335-350, September.
    5. Riphahn, Regina T. & Trübswetter, Parvati, 2011. "The intergenerational transmission of educational attainment in East and West Germany," IAB-Discussion Paper 201104, Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany].
    6. Tilman Brück & Damir Esenaliev, 2013. "Post-Socialist Transition and the Intergenerational Transmission of Education in Kyrgyzstan," Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin 1284, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.

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