Intergenerational and Sibling Spillovers in High School Majors

Gordon B. Dahl, Dan-Olof Rooth and Anders Stenberg

American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, 2024, vol. 16, issue 3, 133-73

Abstract: This paper estimates family spillovers in high school major choice in Sweden, where admission to oversubscribed majors is determined based on GPA. Using a regression discontinuity design, we find large sibling and intergenerational spillovers that depend on the sex mix of a dyad. Same-sex siblings copy one another, while younger brothers recoil from an older sister's choices. Fathers and mothers influence sons but not their daughters, except when a mother majors in the male-dominated program of engineering. Back-of-the-envelope calculations reveal that these within-family spillovers have sizable implications for the sex composition of majors.

JEL-codes: I21 J12 J13 J16 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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Related works:
Working Paper: Intergenerational and Sibling Spillovers in High School Majors (2023)
Working Paper: Intergenerational and Sibling Spillovers in High School Majors (2023)
Working Paper: Intergenerational and Sibling Spillovers in High School Majors (2020)
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DOI: 10.1257/pol.20220197

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