Parental Education and Wages: Evidence from China

Yuanyuan Chen and Shuaizhang Feng
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Yuanyuan Chen: School of Economics, Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, Shanghai 200433, China

Frontiers of Economics in China-Selected Publications from Chinese Universities, 2011, vol. 6, issue 4, 568-591

Abstract: This paper investigates the relationship between parents¡¯ education and children¡¯s wage using two nationally representative data sets in China. Controlling for other things, both father¡¯s and mother¡¯s education are positively correlated with children¡¯s wage. Nevertheless, returns to father¡¯s education are lower in more market-oriented segments of the economy, including coastal regions, the non-state sector, and the later period of the reform era (post-1992), while the opposite is true for mother¡¯s education. We argue that this new empirical evidence is consistent with the story that father¡¯s education mainly indicates family connections useful for locating a better-paying first job, while mother¡¯s education primarily captures unmeasured ability.

Keywords: parental education; wages; family connections; unmeasured ability (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J30 J42 J62 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2011
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (7)

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http://journal.hep.com.cn/fec/EN/10.1007/s11459-011-0148-y (application/pdf)

Related works:
Journal Article: Parental education and wages: Evidence from China (2011)
Working Paper: Parental Education and Wages: Evidence from China (2009)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:fec:journl:v:6:y:2011:i:4:p:568-591

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