| By: |
Björklund, Anders (SOFI, Stockholm University);
Hederos Eriksson, Karin (SOFI, Stockholm University);
Jäntti, Markus (Abo Academy of Finland) |
| Abstract: |
For the purpose of understanding the underlying mechanisms behind
intergenerational associations in income and education, recent studies have
explored the intergenerational transmission of abilities. We use a large
representative sample of Swedish men to examine both intergenerational and
sibling correlations in IQ. Since siblings share both parental factors and
neighbourhood influences, the sibling correlation is a broader measure of the
importance of family background than the intergenerational correlation. We use
IQ data from the Swedish military enlistment tests. The correlation in IQ
between fathers (born 1951-1956) and sons (born 1966-1980) is estimated to
0.347. The corresponding estimate for brothers (born 1951-1968) is 0.473,
suggesting that family background explains approximately 50% of a person's IQ.
Estimating sibling correlations in IQ we thus find that family background has
a substantially larger impact on IQ than has been indicated by previous
studies examining only intergenerational correlations in IQ. |
| Keywords: |
ability, intergenerational mobility, family background |
| JEL: |
J0 I0 J1 |
| Date: |
2009–07 |
| URL: |
http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4305&r=neu |