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Author: Hufe, Paul
Resulting in 1 citation.
1. Hufe, Paul
Peichl, Andreas
Roemer, John
Ungerer, Martin
Inequality of Income Acquisition: The Role of Childhood Circumstances
Social Choice and Welfare 49, 3-4 (December 2017): 499-544.
Also: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00355-017-1044-x
Cohort(s): Children of the NLSY79, NLSY79, NLSY79 Young Adult
Publisher: Springer
Keyword(s): Armed Forces Qualifications Test (AFQT); British Cohort Study (BCS); Childhood; Childhood Adversity/Trauma; Cross-national Analysis; Income; Mothers; Mothers, Behavior; Mothers, Education; Parent-Child Interaction; Parent-Child Relationship/Closeness; Parental Influences; Peabody Individual Achievement Test (PIAT- Math); Peabody Individual Achievement Test (PIAT- Reading)

Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher.

Many studies have estimated the effect of circumstances on income acquisition. Perhaps surprisingly, the fraction of inequality attributable to circumstances is usually quite small--in the advanced democracies, approximately 20%. One reason for this is the lack of data on circumstance variables in empirical research. Here, we argue that all behaviors and accomplishments of children should be considered the consequence of circumstances: that is, an individual should not be considered to be responsible for her choices before an age of consent is reached. Using two data sets that contain data on childhood accomplishments, other environmental circumstances and the income as an adult, we calculate that the fraction of income inequality due to circumstances in the US rises from 27 to 43% when accounting for childhood circumstances. In the UK it rises from 18 to 27%.
Bibliography Citation
Hufe, Paul, Andreas Peichl, John Roemer and Martin Ungerer. "Inequality of Income Acquisition: The Role of Childhood Circumstances." Social Choice and Welfare 49, 3-4 (December 2017): 499-544.