All about balance? A test of the Jack-of-all-Trades theory using military enlistment data

Lina Aldén, Mats Hammarstedt () and Emma Neuman

Labour Economics, 2017, vol. 49, issue C, 1-13

Abstract: According to the Jack-of-all-Trades theory, people with a balanced set of skills are more suitable for self-employment than are those without. In this paper we test this theory using Swedish military enlistment data. This data enables us to construct a measure of balance in abilities that, in comparison to measures used in previous research, is less contaminated by endogeneity problems. We find clear support for the Jack-of-all-Trades theory, in the sense that the likelihood of being self-employed is higher for individuals whose skills are balanced. In addition, their earnings from self-employment tend to be higher.

Keywords: Ability balance; Cognitive and non-cognitive ability; Earnings; Jack-of-all-Trades theory; Occupational choice; Self-employment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J24 J31 L26 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (9)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:labeco:v:49:y:2017:i:c:p:1-13

DOI: 10.1016/j.labeco.2017.09.001

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