The Impact of Parents' Occupatinal Power on Family Educational Expenditure

• In Event: 61.055 - Inequality in Educational Opportunities: Evidence From China

Abstract

Given the lack of data on expenses incurred by households on their children’s education, existing studies of education financing are often limited to that of public expenditure, making it difficult to have objective discussions on private education financing and its impact on the equities of educational opportunity. Using data from the Chinese Family Panel Studies, this study focuses on household educational expenditures. Based on the assumption of nonmonotonicity of the educational Engel curve, the patterns and determinants of household educational expenditures (e.g., regional [urban, rural], household income, parent literacy, parent career reputation ranking) are explored. This paper discusses the challenges faced by China from the perspective of equal opportunity of education. Thus, the paper has far-reaching economic, social, and educational implications.

Authors

• Xiaohao Ding, Peking University

• Qiuyi Weng, Peking University