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Are We Born Aqual: A Study of Intergenerational Income Mobility in China

Author

Listed:
  • Mengjie JIN

    (Nanjing University of Finance and Economics)

  • Xuemei BAI

    (Dongbei University of Finance and Economics)

  • Kevin X. LI

    (Zhejiang University)

  • Wenming SHI

    (University of Tasmania)

Abstract

Studies show that the gain from China's remarkable growth of the past 35 years has not been evenly shared, especially through the intergenerational transmission of income. To address this concern, we use data from China Health and Nutrition Survey and find the intergenerational income elasticity to be 0.466 in 2011, which suggests that sons’ incomes are affected by their fathers’ economic statuses to a large extent. A cross-country comparison indicates that the degree of generational income mobility in China is lower than that in many developed nations. Meanwhile, by investigating possible transmission channels, we find that the fathers’ investments in the sons’ education and occupation play substantial roles in intergenerational transmission of income. The results not only demonstrate the trends in intergenerational income mobility in China, but also identify the most likely transmission channels, which is of great importance to improving social equality.

Suggested Citation

  • Mengjie JIN & Xuemei BAI & Kevin X. LI & Wenming SHI, 2019. "Are We Born Aqual: A Study of Intergenerational Income Mobility in China," JODE - Journal of Demographic Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 85(1), pages 1-19, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:ctl:louvde:v:85:y:2019:i:1:p:1-19
    DOI: 10.1017/dem.2018.19
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Aso, Hiroki, 2020. "Endogenous lifetime, intergenerational mobility and economic development," MPRA Paper 99582, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    2. Huang, Xiao & Huang, Shoujun & Shui, Ailun, 2021. "Government spending and intergenerational income mobility: Evidence from China," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 191(C), pages 387-414.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Intergenerational income mobility; Persistent transitory fluctuations; Social equality; Transmission mechanisms;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D10 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - General
    • D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution
    • D63 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement

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