Proxying ability by family background in returns to schooling estimations is generally a bad idea

Erik Mellander (erik.mellander@ifau.uu.se) and Sofia Sandgren-Massih (sofia.sandgren@nek.uu.se)
Additional contact information
Erik Mellander: IFAU - Institute for Labour Market Policy Evaluation, Postal: P O Box 513, SE-751 20 Uppsala, Sweden
Sofia Sandgren-Massih: Department of Economonics, Uppsala University, Postal: P O Box 513, SE-751 20 Uppsala, Sweden

No 2008:22, Working Paper Series from IFAU - Institute for Evaluation of Labour Market and Education Policy

Abstract: A regression model is considered where earnings are explained by schooling and ability. It is assumed that schooling is measured with error and that there are no data on ability. Regressing earnings on observed schooling then yields an estimate of the return to schooling that is subject to positive omitted variable bias (OVB) and negative measurement error bias (MEB). The effects on the OVB and the MEB from using family background variables as proxies for ability are investigated theoretically and empirically. The theoretical analysis demonstrates that the impact on the OVB is uncertain, while the MEB invariably increases in magnitude. The empirical analysis shows that the MEB generally dominates the OVB. As the measurement error increases and/or more family background variables are added, the total bias rapidly becomes negative, driving the estimated return further and further away from the true value.

Keywords: Missing data; proxy variables; measurement error; consistent estimates of omitted variable bias and measurement error bias (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C13 C20 C52 J31 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 28 pages
Date: 2008-10-20
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-lab
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

Published in Scandinavian Journal of Economics, 2008, pages 853-875.

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