Greg Duncan, Ariel Kalil, Susan E.
Mayer,
Robin Tepper, and Monique R. Payne
Abstract
We use data from the National Longitudinal Survey
of Youth (NLSY), the Children of the NLSY, and from a study in
Prince George's County, Maryland, to assess the relationship between
17 characteristics of mothers measured during adolescence and
the same characteristics of their children, also measured during
adolescence. We find positive correlations between specific characteristics
of parents and children. But we also find that few parental characteristics
predict characteristics of children other than the same one that
is measured in parents. Four mechanisms might explain such correlations
— socioeconomic resources, parenting practices, genetic inheritance,
and role modeling. These four mechanisms make varying predictions
about which parental traits will be correlated with which child
traits; whether the traits of fathers or mothers should be more
important to sons or daughters; and to what extent parental socioeconomic
characteristics, parenting behaviors, and children’s identification
with their parents account for the observed correlations. Our
evidence provides little support for the SES and parenting explanations,
but more substantial support that role modeling may account for
some of the intergenerational correlations, and genetic factors
may account for others.
Greg Duncan, School
of Education and Social Policy, Northwestern University
Ariel Kalil, Harris Graduate School of Public Policy
Studies, University of Chicago
Susan E. Mayer, Harris Graduate School of Public Policy
Studies, University of Chicago Robin Tepper, School of Social Service Administration,
University of Chicago Monique R. Payne, Graduate Fellow, Department
of Sociology, Northwestern University
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