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Compensating for unequal parental investments in schooling

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  • Loren Brandt
  • Aloysius Siow
  • Hui Wang

Abstract

This paper investigates how rural families in China use marital and post-marital transfers to compensate their sons for unequal schooling expenditures. Using a common behavioral framework, we derive two methods for estimating the relationship between parental transfers and schooling investments: the log-linear and multiplicative household fixed-effects regression models. Using data from a unique household-level survey, we strongly reject the log-linear specification. Results from the multiplicative model suggest that when a son receives 1 yuan less in schooling investment than his brother, he obtains 0.47 yuan more in transfers as partial compensation. Since our measure of transfers represents a substantial fraction of total parental transfers, sons with more schooling likely enjoy higher lifetime consumption. Redistribution within the household may be limited by either the parents’ desire for consumption equality or bargaining constraints imposed by their children. Controlling for unobserved household heterogeneity and a fuller accounting of lifetime transfers are quantitatively important. Copyright Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2015

Suggested Citation

  • Loren Brandt & Aloysius Siow & Hui Wang, 2015. "Compensating for unequal parental investments in schooling," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 28(2), pages 423-462, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:jopoec:v:28:y:2015:i:2:p:423-462
    DOI: 10.1007/s00148-014-0528-6
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    1. Shelly Lundberg & Aloysius Siow, 2017. "Canadian contributions to family economics," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 50(5), pages 1304-1323, December.
    2. Christine Ho, 2019. "Child’s gender, parental monetary investments and care of elderly parents in China," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 17(3), pages 741-774, September.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Household model; Parental investment; Marriage market; Transfers; D13; J12; J13;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D13 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Household Production and Intrahouse Allocation
    • J12 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Marriage; Marital Dissolution; Family Structure
    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth

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