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Roots of opportunity: influences of early-life health on intergenerational mobility in a developing country

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  • Giovanna Pavlovic Quintão
  • Luiz Guilherme Scorzafave

Abstract

This study investigates the long-term effects of early-life health on intergenerational mobility in Brazil. Using the first cohort in Brazil, conducted in Ribeirão Preto city in 1978-79, linked to administrative income records, we study the effects of low birth weight on upward mobility and income inequality, conditional on several confounding factors. We find that individuals born with low birth weight have 13.5 percentage point chance to surpass their parents' income by at least 10 percentiles. The penalty for having poor early health remains if we use other measures of early health.

Suggested Citation

  • Giovanna Pavlovic Quintão & Luiz Guilherme Scorzafave, 2025. "Roots of opportunity: influences of early-life health on intergenerational mobility in a developing country," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2025-76, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    • Handle: RePEc:unu:wpaper:wp-2025-76
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Shin-Yi Chou & Jin-Tan Liu & Michael Grossman & Ted Joyce, 2010. "Parental Education and Child Health: Evidence from a Natural Experiment in Taiwan," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 2(1), pages 33-61, January.
    2. Raj Chetty & Nathaniel Hendren & Patrick Kline & Emmanuel Saez, 2014. "Where is the land of Opportunity? The Geography of Intergenerational Mobility in the United States," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 129(4), pages 1553-1623.
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