The Contribution of Skills and Family Background to Educational Mobility

• Date: 01 January 2017
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/sjoe.12198
• Published date: 01 January 2017

Scand. J. of Economics 119(1), 148–177, 2017

DOI: 10.1111/sjoe.12198

The Contribution of Skills and Family

Background to Educational Mobility∗

Aldo Rustichini

University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA

aldo.rustichini@gmail.com

William G. Iacono

University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA

wiacono@umn.edu

Matt McGue

University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA

mcgue001@umn.edu

Abstract

We study the role of hard and soft skills in economic performance and social mobility

inasampleoftwins(N=2,764) from the Minnesota Twin Family Study, combining

classical economic models of parental investment with a complete and realistic equilibrium

model of genetic transmission of skills. Hard and soft skills have comparable roles in

affecting early educational success and college attainment. We then use the information on

family background to estimate the determinants of social intergenerational mobility. The

transmission of personality characteristics – in particular but not exclusively of intelligence

– explains a substantial fraction of upward and downward mobility of children.

Keywords: Genetics; inequality; mobility; soft and hard skills

JEL classification:D9; J1; J24

I. Introduction

The contribution of cognitive factors to academic success has been ex-

tensively investigated and convincingly established. Intelligence and other

cognitive abilities are strongly associated with both doing well academi-

cally and the ultimate level of educational attainment (Strenze, 2007; Deary,

2012). Recently, a convergence of findings across multiple programs of re-

search has drawn attention to the role non-cognitive factors might play

in educational outcomes. Perhaps most prominent among these is the

∗We thank two referees for detailed comments on an earlier draft of the paper. Supported in

part by grants from the National Science Foundation (SES1357877), the National Institute

on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (AA09367), and the National Institute of Drug Abuse

(DA05147).

CThe editors of The Scandinavian Journal of Economics 2016.

A. Rustichini, W. G. Iacono, and M. McGue 149

reanalysis of the landmark Perry Preschool program by Heckman and

colleagues, who reported that individuals who received the preschool in-

tervention had higher levels of educational attainment, employment, and

marriage, and lower levels of crime, as adults than individuals who did not

receive the intervention (Heckman and Kautz, 2012). However, the Perry

program was not associated with enduring increases in measured intelli-

gence, suggesting that the long-term intervention effects might be a result

of non-cognitive rather than cognitive factors. In support of this interpre-

tation, Heckman et al. (2013) have shown that the Perry intervention was

associated with lower levels of externalizing behavior and higher levels

of academic initiative, although the effect on the latter was seen only in

females.

Further support for the importance of non-cognitive factors comes from

a growing body of research showing that personality factors are associated

with academic and related outcomes. Much of this research has been based

on the five-factor model of personality (Goldberg, 1993) and has impli-

cated conscientiousness as the personality factor most strongly associated

with academic outcomes. Meta-analyses have shown that conscientious-

ness is moderately associated with academic success at both elementary

school (Poropat, 2014) and university (Poropat, 2009) levels. These find-

ings with academic outcomes parallel meta-analytical findings with work

outcomes, which also identify conscientiousness as the strongest predictor

among the big-five traits (Barrick and Mount, 1991). Finally, research by

Duckworth and her colleagues further supports an important contribution

of non-cognitive factors to academic outcomes. In a series of short-term

longitudinal studies with middle-school students, these researchers have

shown that both cognitive and non-cognitive factors contribute to academic

success, with non-cognitive factors sometimes carrying more predictive

weight than cognitive factors (Duckworth and Seligman, 2005; Duckworth

et al., 2007). Duckworth believes that the key non-cognitive factor is what

she calls “grit”, a multifaceted construct that represents a combination of

self-control, perseverance, and interest. Individuals with high levels of grit

are capable of postponing immediate rewards in the service of achieving

long-term goals (Duckworth et al., 2007). While Duckworth has stated that

grit is conceptually distinct from conscientiousness, there appears to be a

strong empirical overlap between the two. A popular self-reported measure

of grit correlated 0.77 with the conscientiousness scale from the big-five

inventory (Duckworth et al., 2009).

The research described here addresses several key unanswered questions

about the relationship between cognitive and non-cognitive factors and

academic outcomes. First, the existing research is predominantly cross-

sectional or involves short-term longitudinal follow-up (e.g., within the

same school year). Apart from the Perry program, relatively little is known

CThe editors of The Scandinavian Journal of Economics 2016.