Multigenerational Persistence: Evidence from 146 Years of Administrative Data

Jørgen Modalsli

Journal of Human Resources, 2023, vol. 58, issue 3, 929-961

Abstract: This work documents multigenerational persistence in economic status, showing that not only do parents influence children’s economic outcomes, but so too do grandparents and great-grandparents. Economic persistence is measured using direct grandfather–father–son links, including up to five generations, in administrative data from Norway spanning nearly 150 years (1865–2011). The findings are robust to alternative ways of measuring the characteristics of the parent generation, as well as to alternative indicators of economic status. High persistence is observed also in subsamples where grandchildren had less chance to interact directly with grandparents, suggesting an important role of unexpressed family characteristics in intergenerational transmission. The results indicate a slower occupational convergence across families over time than what is implied by parent–child associations.

JEL-codes: D31 J62 N33 N34 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
Note: DOI: https://doi.org/10.3368/jhr.59.1.1018-9825R2
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Related works:
Working Paper: Multigenerational persistence. Evidence from 146 years of administrative data (2016)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:uwp:jhriss:v:58:y:2023:i:3:p:929-961

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