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Childhood sporting activities and adult labour-market outcomes

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Abstract

It is well known that non-cognitive skills are an important determinant of success in life. However, their returns are not simple to measure and, as a result, relatively few studies have dealt with this empirical question. We consider sports participation while at school as one way of improving or signalling the individual's non-cognitive skills endowment. We use four waves of Add Health data to study how sports participation by schoolchildren translates into labour-market success. We specifically test the hypotheses that participation in different types of sports at school leads to, ceteris paribus, very different types of jobs and labour-market insertion in general when adult. We take seriously the issue of endogeneity of sporting activities in order to tease out a causal relationship between childhood sporting activity and adult labour market success. As such, we contribute to the literature on the returns to non-cognitive skills

Suggested Citation

  • Charlotte Cabane & Andrew Clark, 2011. "Childhood sporting activities and adult labour-market outcomes," Documents de travail du Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne 11052, Université Panthéon-Sorbonne (Paris 1), Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne.
    • Handle: RePEc:mse:cesdoc:11052
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    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Blog mentions

    As found by EconAcademics.org, the blog aggregator for Economics research:
    1. Which childhood sport is more promising for labor market outcomes
      by Economic Logician in Economic Logic on 2011-12-07 21:42:00
    2. The dark side of sport
      by chris dillow in Stumbling and Mumbling on 2011-12-15 21:06:34
    3. Why teach sport?
      by chris dillow in Stumbling and Mumbling on 2012-08-13 18:06:39
    4. Gender, competition & boardrooms
      by ? in Stumbling and Mumbling on 2013-08-16 19:10:00

    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Cabane, Charlotte & Hille, Adrian & Lechner, Michael, 2015. "Mozart or Pelé? The effects of teenagers’ participation in music and sports," Economics Working Paper Series 1509, University of St. Gallen, School of Economics and Political Science.
    2. Barbara Kotschwar & Kevin Stahler, 2016. "Level the Playing Field to Bolster the Boardroom: Sports as a Springboard for Women's Labor Force Advancement in Asia," Asian Economic Policy Review, Japan Center for Economic Research, vol. 11(1), pages 117-134, January.
    3. Cabane Charlotte & Lechner Michael, 2015. "Physical Activity of Adults: A Survey of Correlates, Determinants, and Effects," Journal of Economics and Statistics (Jahrbuecher fuer Nationaloekonomie und Statistik), De Gruyter, vol. 235(4-5), pages 376-402, August.
    4. Lechner, Michael & Hille, Adrian & Cabane, Charlotte, 2015. "Mozart or Pelé? The effects of teenagers? participation in music and sports," CEPR Discussion Papers 10556, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    5. Thierry Kamionka, 2021. "Sporting Activity, Employment Status and Wage," Post-Print hal-03294084, HAL.
    6. Geraint Johnes, 2018. "A sporting chance: on the impact of sports participation on subsequent earnings," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 38(1), pages 146-151.
    7. Lunn, Peter D. & Kelly, Elish, 2015. "Participation in school sport and post-school pathways: evidence from ireland," National Institute Economic Review, National Institute of Economic and Social Research, vol. 232, pages 51-66, May.
    8. Élise Coudin & Arthur Souletie, 2016. "Obésité et marché du travail : les impacts de la corpulence sur l’emploi et le salaire," Économie et Statistique, Programme National Persée, vol. 486(1), pages 79-102.
    9. Cabane, Charlotte & Hille, Adrian & Lechner, Michael, 2016. "Mozart or Pelé? The effects of adolescents' participation in music and sports," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 90-103.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Job quality; sport; non-cognitive skills;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J28 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Safety; Job Satisfaction; Related Public Policy
    • L83 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Sports; Gambling; Restaurants; Recreation; Tourism
    • I2 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education

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