Intergenerational transmission of educational attainment: The role of household assets

High intergenerational persistence of educational attainment is an indicator of educational inequality and a barrier to equal opportunities in the labor market and beyond. This study uses data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics to generate a sample of two cohorts of children (’84 and &94 cohorts), and it examines whether intergenerational transmission of educational attainment varies by household economic resources, especially household assets. Results show that, among male children in the &94 cohort, household assets increase the strength of the association between parents’ and children's years of schooling. Also, household assets are found to interact with parental education to affect educational attainment, as measured by college completion, among female children in the &94 cohort. Research and policy implications are discussed.

► The study samples two cohorts from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics.
► It examines how assets affect intergenerational persistence of education outcomes.
► Assets strengthen the tie between parents’ and male children's years of schooling.
► Assets weaken the association of parents’ and female children's college graduation.