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The Influence of Parental and Grandparental Education in the Transmission of Human Capital

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  • Hector Moreno

    (Paris School of Economics)

Abstract

This paper examines the influence of parental and grandparental education in the transmission of human capital. A natural experimental set-up, from a regional conflict that occurred in 1926 is exploited to instrument years of schooling of the grandparents' generation whereas local labour market indicators at adolescence serve as an instrument for the education of the parents' generation. Using a nationally representative Mexican survey that gathers detailed information on three generations, the paper shows that accounting for endogeneity reveals significantly more inter-generational mobility rather than ignoring it. The paper also documents greater persistence of family background in the older pair of parent-child links, i.e. grandparent-parent, than in the younger pair, i.e. parent-grandchildren. Results show that the direct influence of parental education on the grandchildren's education is so dominant that the impact of grand-parental education fades away once accounting for parental education.

Suggested Citation

  • Hector Moreno, 2021. "The Influence of Parental and Grandparental Education in the Transmission of Human Capital," Working Papers 588, ECINEQ, Society for the Study of Economic Inequality.
    • Handle: RePEc:inq:inqwps:ecineq2021-588
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    File URL: http://www.ecineq.org/milano/WP/ECINEQ2021-588.pdf
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    Cited by:

    1. Jacobs, Babs & van der Velden, Rolf, 2021. "Exploring the uncharted waters of educational mobility: The role of key skills," Research Memorandum 016, Maastricht University, Graduate School of Business and Economics (GSBE).
    2. Ferreira, Francisco H. G. & Brunori, Paolo & Neidhöfer, Guido & Salas-Rojo, Pedro & Sirugue, Louis, 2025. "Inherited inequality in Latin America," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 130163, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    3. Hanushek, Eric A. & Jacobs, Babs & Schwerdt, Guido & Van der Velden, Rolf & Vermeulen, Stan & Wiederhold, Simon, 2021. "The Intergenerational Transmission of Cognitive Skills: An Investigation of the Causal Impact of Families on Student Outcomes," IZA Discussion Papers 14854, IZA Network @ LISER.
    4. repec:osf:socarx:qwb6k_v1 is not listed on IDEAS
    5. Brunori, Paolo & Ferreira, Francisco H. G. & Neidhöfer, Guido, 2023. "Inequality of opportunity and intergenerational persistence in Latin America," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 120555, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    6. Eric A. Hanushek & Babs Jacobs & Guido Schwerdt & Rolf van der Velden & Stan Vermeulen & Simon Wiederhold, 2021. "Where Do STEM Graduates Stem From? The Intergenerational Transmission of Comparative Skill Advantages," CESifo Working Paper Series 9388, CESifo.

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    JEL classification:

    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • I24 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Inequality
    • J62 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Job, Occupational and Intergenerational Mobility; Promotion

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