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Social mobility and inequality in urban China: understanding the role of intergenerational transmission of education

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  • Elisabetta Magnani
  • Rong Zhu

Abstract

China's rapid economic growth since the late 1980s has been accompanied by great economic and social transformations, which have resulted in a sharp increase in income inequality. This article contributes to the literature of social mobility in China by examining the impact of parental education on the education of their children. Using the 1990 and 2000 Chinese Population Censuses, we employ nonparametric estimation strategies to provide a systematic investigation of intergenerational transmission of education in urban China. We find evidence of increasing parents-children educational correlations. Our results raise concerns regarding economic inequality in urban China as high intergenerational persistence of education is expected to be a barrier to equal opportunities in children's education attainments and their future labour market outcomes.

Suggested Citation

  • Elisabetta Magnani & Rong Zhu, 2015. "Social mobility and inequality in urban China: understanding the role of intergenerational transmission of education," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 47(43), pages 4590-4606, September.
  • Handle: RePEc:taf:applec:v:47:y:2015:i:43:p:4590-4606
    DOI: 10.1080/00036846.2015.1031877
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    1. Joshua D. Angrist & Jörn-Steffen Pischke, 2009. "Mostly Harmless Econometrics: An Empiricist's Companion," Economics Books, Princeton University Press, edition 1, number 8769.
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    Cited by:

    1. Shu Wang & Xiao Yu & Kuo Zhang & Jipeng Pei & Karlis Rokpelnis & Xuelong Wang, 2022. "How does education affect intergenerational income mobility in Chinese society?," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(2), pages 774-792, May.
    2. Tharcisio Leone, 2022. "The geography of intergenerational mobility: Evidence of educational persistence and the “Great Gatsby Curve” in Brazil," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(3), pages 1227-1251, August.
    3. He Zhu & Tsunehiro OTSUKI, 2018. "Can Two Consecutive Generations’ Data Predict Longterm Intergenerational Transition? Evidence from China with three generations," OSIPP Discussion Paper 18E004, Osaka School of International Public Policy, Osaka University.
    4. Wang, Haining & Cheng, Zhiming, 2021. "Mama loves you: The gender wage gap and expenditure on children's education in China," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 188(C), pages 1015-1034.
    5. Timothy Tyler Brown & Vishnu Murthy, 2020. "Do public health activities pay for themselves? The effect of county‐level public health expenditures on county‐level public assistance medical care benefits in California," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(10), pages 1220-1230, October.
    6. Ahmed DRIOUCHI & Cristina BOBOC & Alae GAMAR, 2016. "Inequality In Educational Attainment of Females in Arab Countries: Comparisons to Eastern and Central European Economies," Romanian Journal of Economics, Institute of National Economy, vol. 43(2(52)), pages 34-60, december.
    7. Huo, Yujia & Golley, Jane, 2022. "Intergenerational education transmission in China: The gender dimension," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    8. Jiaxin Fan & Bei Li & Ishita Chatterjee, 2020. "Intergenerational Transmission of Educational Attainment in China," Economics Discussion / Working Papers 20-19, The University of Western Australia, Department of Economics.
    9. Ã lvaro Choi, 2023. "The Impact of Compulsory Schooling Expansion on Educational Outcomes: The Case of Indonesia," UB School of Economics Working Papers 2023/452, University of Barcelona School of Economics.
    10. Florencia Torche, 2019. "Educational mobility in developing countries," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2019-88, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    11. driouchi, ahmed & Gamar, Alae, 2015. "Is there a Gatsby Curve for Educational Attainment in Arab Countries?," MPRA Paper 63869, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 22 Apr 2015.
    12. Guo, Yumei & Song, Yang & Chen, Qianmiao, 2019. "Impacts of education policies on intergenerational education mobility in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 124-142.
    13. Liu, Ling & Wan, Qian, 2017. "The Effect of Education Expansion on Intergenerational Mobility of Education: Evidence from China," MPRA Paper 80616, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    14. Roy van der Weide & Ambar Narayan, 2019. "China and the United States: Different economic models but similarly low levels of socioeconomic mobility," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2019-121, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    15. Haepp, Tobias & Lyu, Lidan, 2018. "The Impact of Primary School Investment Reallocation on Educational Attainment in Rural Areas of the People’s Republic of China," ADBI Working Papers 821, Asian Development Bank Institute.
    16. Lijia Guo & Jiashun Huang & You Zhang, 2019. "Education Development in China: Education Return, Quality, and Equity," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(13), pages 1-20, July.
    17. Jingyi Huang & Yumei Guo & Yang Song, 2016. "Intergenerational transmission of education in China: Pattern, mechanism, and policies," Working Papers 415, ECINEQ, Society for the Study of Economic Inequality.
    18. Driouchi, Ahmed & Gamar, Alae, 2016. "The Gap between Educational & Social Intergenerational Mobility in Arab Countries," MPRA Paper 73998, University Library of Munich, Germany.

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