The impact of higher education expansion on intergenerational mobility |
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| Authors: | Zhi Li Hai Zhong |
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| Affiliation: | 1. School of Economics, Capital University of Economics and Business, Beijing, China;2. School of Public Finance and Public Policy, Central University of Finance and Economics, Beijing, China |
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| Abstract: | The persistent correlations between parents and children's outcomes have long been investigated. From a policy perspective, it is important to understand the underlying causes of those correlations. Educational policy changes may have significant impacts on intergenerational mobility. The last several decades have witnessed a remarkable expansion of higher education around the world. In this paper, we examine the effect of higher education expansion on intergenerational mobility in China. We find that the higher education expansion in China has weakened the advantage of cadres’ children in higher education participation, and has strengthened the intergenerational educational correlation. One explanation for these results might be that, along with the process of economic reform started in 1979, the cadre selection mechanism has placed more and more weight on candidate's education and abilities. |
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| Keywords: | Intergenerational mobility higher education expansion political status China |
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