Changes in the Effect of the Childhood Socioeconomic Status on U.S. Adults’ Cognitive Skills

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Abstract

While the impact of education and childhood socioeconomic status (cSES) on adults’ cognitive skills has been extensively researched, less attention has been paid to how education and cSES account for generational differences in U.S. adults’ cognitive skills. The present study employed both ordinary least squares regression and the Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition analysis to examine the first and second rounds of PIAAC data. Between the first and second cycle, the impact of education remained consistent but the influence of cSES on skills and the differences declined. In contrast, the proportion of the differences in the second cycle was better explained by occupation. This finding indicates that indirect impact of cSES on cognitive skills persisted, while its direct impact diminished.

Author

• Wan Yu, Chung-Ang University