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Assortative Mating and Education Gradients Within and Across Generations

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  • Paul Bingley
  • Lorenzo Cappellari
  • Konstantinos Tatsiramos

Abstract

We study how assortative mating shapes the composition of education–outcome gradients and how these gradients relate to intergenerational transmission. Using Danish administrative data on family quartets, we decompose own gradients in long-run earnings, disposable income, assets, and wealth into jointly transmitted parental factors, parent-specific transmission, nonparental shared influences, and individual-specific heterogeneity. Earnings and income gradients mainly reflect jointly transmitted parental factors and individual-specific heterogeneity; assets and especially wealth mainly reflect parent-specific transmission. Comparing families facing different parental access to middle schools, we show that the composition of financial gradients varies by educational opportunity, while labor market gradients are largely invariant.

Suggested Citation

  • Paul Bingley & Lorenzo Cappellari & Konstantinos Tatsiramos, 2026. "Assortative Mating and Education Gradients Within and Across Generations," CESifo Working Paper Series 12763, CESifo.
    • Handle: RePEc:ces:ceswps:_12763
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • J62 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Job, Occupational and Intergenerational Mobility; Promotion
    • D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution
    • J12 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Marriage; Marital Dissolution; Family Structure
    • I24 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Inequality
    • E21 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Consumption; Saving; Wealth
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity

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