The intergenerational effects of parental schooling on the cognitive and non-cognitive development of children

This article, using the National Child Development Study, estimates the causal relationship between parents’ schooling and children's cognitive and non-cognitive development using the 1947 compulsory schooling legislation in Great Britain. The least squares estimates suggest strong correlations between parental education and these developmental indicators. However, the instrument variable estimates are not sufficiently precise to find that either parent's schooling has a beneficial effect on children's cognitive and non-cognitive development.