Three-generation mobility in the United States, 1850–1940: The role of maternal and paternal grandparents

Claudia Olivetti, M. Daniele Paserman and Laura Salisbury

Explorations in Economic History, 2018, vol. 70, issue C, 73-90

Abstract: This paper estimates intergenerational elasticities across three generations in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, exploring how maternal and paternal grandfathers predict the economic status of their grandsons and granddaughters. We document that the relationship between the income of grandparents and grandchildren differs by gender. The socio-economic status of grandsons is more strongly associated with the status of paternal grandfathers than maternal grandfathers. The status of maternal grandfathers is more strongly correlated with the status of granddaughters than grandsons, while the opposite is true for paternal grandfathers. We argue that the findings can be rationalized by a model of gender-specific intergenerational transmission of traits and imperfect assortative mating.

Keywords: Intergenerational mobility; Multiple generations; Gender; Marriage; Assortative mating (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J12 J62 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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Related works:
Working Paper: Three-generation Mobility in the United States, 1850-1940: The Role of Maternal and Paternal Grandparents (2016)
Working Paper: Three-generation Mobility in the United States, 1850-1940: The Role of Maternal and Paternal Grandparents (2016)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:exehis:v:70:y:2018:i:c:p:73-90

DOI: 10.1016/j.eeh.2018.07.001

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