The intergenerational transmission of cognitive skills: An investigation of the causal impact of families on student outcomes

Eric A. Hanushek; Babs Jacobs; Guido Schwerdt; Rolf van der Velden; Stan Vermeulen; Simon Wiederhold

The intergenerational transmission of cognitive skills: An investigation of the causal impact of families on student outcomes

Eric A. Hanushek, Babs Jacobs, Guido Schwerdt, Rolf van der Velden, Stan Vermeulen, Simon Wiederhold

Research output: Working paper / Preprint › Discussion paper

Abstract

The extensive literature on intergenerational mobility highlights the importance of family linkages but fails to provide credible evidence about the underlying family factors that drive the pervasive correlations. We employ a unique combination of Dutch survey and registry data that links math and language skills across generations. We identify a causal connection between cognitive skills of parents and their children by exploiting within-family betweensubject variation in these skills. The data also permit novel IV estimation that isolates variation in parental cognitive skills due to school and peer quality. The between-subject and IV estimates of the key intergenerational persistence parameter are strikingly similar
and close at about 0.1. Finally, we show the strong influence of family skill transmission on children’s choices of STEM fields.

Original language	English
Place of Publication	Bonn
Publisher	IZA
Number of pages	71
Publication status	Published - 2021

Publication series

Series	IZA Discussion Paper Series
Number	14854

JEL classifications

i24 - Education and Inequality
j12 - "Marriage; Marital Dissolution; Family Structure; Domestic Abuse"
j24 - "Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity"
j62 - "Job, Occupational, and Intergenerational Mobility; Promotion"

Keywords

intergenerational mobility
parent-child skill transmission
causality
STEM

Access to Document

https://docs.iza.org/dp14854.pdf

Cite this

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title = "The intergenerational transmission of cognitive skills: An investigation of the causal impact of families on student outcomes",

abstract = "The extensive literature on intergenerational mobility highlights the importance of family linkages but fails to provide credible evidence about the underlying family factors that drive the pervasive correlations. We employ a unique combination of Dutch survey and registry data that links math and language skills across generations. We identify a causal connection between cognitive skills of parents and their children by exploiting within-family betweensubject variation in these skills. The data also permit novel IV estimation that isolates variation in parental cognitive skills due to school and peer quality. The between-subject and IV estimates of the key intergenerational persistence parameter are strikingly similarand close at about 0.1. Finally, we show the strong influence of family skill transmission on children{\textquoteright}s choices of STEM fields. ",

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AU - Hanushek, Eric A.

AU - Jacobs, Babs

AU - Schwerdt, Guido

AU - van der Velden, Rolf

AU - Vermeulen, Stan

AU - Wiederhold, Simon

PY - 2021

Y1 - 2021

N2 - The extensive literature on intergenerational mobility highlights the importance of family linkages but fails to provide credible evidence about the underlying family factors that drive the pervasive correlations. We employ a unique combination of Dutch survey and registry data that links math and language skills across generations. We identify a causal connection between cognitive skills of parents and their children by exploiting within-family betweensubject variation in these skills. The data also permit novel IV estimation that isolates variation in parental cognitive skills due to school and peer quality. The between-subject and IV estimates of the key intergenerational persistence parameter are strikingly similarand close at about 0.1. Finally, we show the strong influence of family skill transmission on children’s choices of STEM fields.

AB - The extensive literature on intergenerational mobility highlights the importance of family linkages but fails to provide credible evidence about the underlying family factors that drive the pervasive correlations. We employ a unique combination of Dutch survey and registry data that links math and language skills across generations. We identify a causal connection between cognitive skills of parents and their children by exploiting within-family betweensubject variation in these skills. The data also permit novel IV estimation that isolates variation in parental cognitive skills due to school and peer quality. The between-subject and IV estimates of the key intergenerational persistence parameter are strikingly similarand close at about 0.1. Finally, we show the strong influence of family skill transmission on children’s choices of STEM fields.

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KW - causality

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BT - The intergenerational transmission of cognitive skills: An investigation of the causal impact of families on student outcomes

PB - IZA

CY - Bonn

ER -