Does Quality Time Produce Quality Children? Evidence on the Intergenerational Transmission of Human Capital Using Parental Deaths

57 Pages Posted: 14 Mar 2011

See all articles by Eric D. Gould

Eric D. Gould

Hebrew University of Jerusalem - Department of Economics; Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR); IZA Institute of Labor Economics

Avi Simhon

Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Multiple version iconThere are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: February 1, 2011

Abstract

This paper uses variation created by parental deaths in the amount of time children spend with each parent to examine whether the parent-child correlation in schooling outcomes stems from a causal relationship. Using a large sample of Israeli children who lost one parent during childhood, we find a series of striking patterns which show that the relationship is largely causal. Relative to children who did not lose a parent, the education of the deceased parent is less important in determining child outcomes, while the education of the surviving parent becomes a stronger factor. Moreover, within the group of families that lost a parent, this pattern intensifies when a child loses a parent earlier in life - the education of the deceased parent becomes even less important, while the effect of the surviving parent's schooling intensifies. These results provide strong evidence that there is a causal connection between parent and child schooling, which is dependent on the child's interaction time with each parent. These findings help us understand why educated parents typically spend more time with their children - they are more effective in producing human capital in their children.

Keywords: Education, intergenerational mobility

JEL Classification: I21, J13, J24

Suggested Citation

Gould, Eric D. and Simhon, Avi, Does Quality Time Produce Quality Children? Evidence on the Intergenerational Transmission of Human Capital Using Parental Deaths (February 1, 2011). CEPR Discussion Paper No. DP8258, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1782552

Eric D. Gould (Contact Author)

Hebrew University of Jerusalem - Department of Economics ( email )

Mount Scopus
Jerusalem, 91905
Israel
+972 2 588 3247 (Phone)
+972 2 581 6071 (Fax)

HOME PAGE: https://sites.google.com/site/edgould

Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)

London
United Kingdom

IZA Institute of Labor Economics

P.O. Box 7240
Bonn, D-53072
Germany

Avi Simhon

Hebrew University of Jerusalem ( email )

Mount Scopus
Jerusalem 91905, Jerusalem 91905
Israel
+972 2 588 3237 (Phone)
+972 2 581 6071 (Fax)

Do you have negative results from your research you’d like to share?

Paper statistics

Downloads
3
Abstract Views
618
PlumX Metrics