On the Family Origins of Human Capital Formation: Evidence from Donor Children
Saved in:
| Title: | On the Family Origins of Human Capital Formation: Evidence from Donor Children |
|---|---|
| Authors: | Lundborg, Petter, Plug, Erik, Rasmussen, Astrid Würtz |
| Contributors: | Lund University, Lund University School of Economics and Management, LUSEM, Centre for Economic Demography, Lunds universitet, Ekonomihögskolan, Centrum för ekonomisk demografi, Originator, Lund University, Lund University School of Economics and Management, LUSEM, Department of Economics, Lunds universitet, Ekonomihögskolan, Nationalekonomiska institutionen, Originator |
| Source: | Review of Economic Studies. 92(5):3245-3275 |
| Subject Terms: | Social Sciences, Economics and Business, Economics, Samhällsvetenskap, Ekonomi och näringsliv, Nationalekonomi |
| Description: | We introduce a novel strategy to study the intergenerational transmission of human capital skills, net of genetic skill transfers. For this purpose, we use unique Danish data on children conceived through sperm and egg donation in in vitro fertilization treatments to estimate the relationship between child test scores and parental years of schooling. Because the assignment of donors is not selective, these parental schooling estimates allow for a causal nurture interpretation. Once we take account of genes, we find that only the education of mothers matters: the association between father’s education and child test scores (in reading and math) is insignificant and practically zero, whereas the association between mother’s education and child test scores (in reading, not in math) is significant and large, and as large as the association we estimate for mothers of non-donor children. |
| Access URL: | https://doi.org/10.1093/restud/rdae101 |
| Database: | SwePub |
Nájsť tento článok vo Web of Science | Abstract: | We introduce a novel strategy to study the intergenerational transmission of human capital skills, net of genetic skill transfers. For this purpose, we use unique Danish data on children conceived through sperm and egg donation in in vitro fertilization treatments to estimate the relationship between child test scores and parental years of schooling. Because the assignment of donors is not selective, these parental schooling estimates allow for a causal nurture interpretation. Once we take account of genes, we find that only the education of mothers matters: the association between father’s education and child test scores (in reading and math) is insignificant and practically zero, whereas the association between mother’s education and child test scores (in reading, not in math) is significant and large, and as large as the association we estimate for mothers of non-donor children. |
|---|---|
| ISSN: | 00346527 1467937x |
| DOI: | 10.1093/restud/rdae101 |