The Difference a Degree Makes? Traditional and Non-traditional Credentials in the Intergenerational Transmission of Maternal Education

• In Event: 418 - Section on Sociology of Education Paper Session. Intergenerational Transmission of Educational Advantage

Abstract

The U.S. educational expansion is notable for its duration, speed, and associations with economic growth. An often omitted fact in accounts of the U.S. educational expansion is the extent to which it occurred via non-traditional credentials such as the General Education Development (GED) certificate and the two-year postsecondary associate’s degree. Continuation of the educational expansion and associated benefits therefore depend to an important degree on the extent to which non-traditional credentials are transmitted to the next generation. According to sociological theory, such credentials may set floors on the next generation’s educational attainments similar to those set by traditional credentials. But, these qualitatively distinct credentials may (also) be a stratifying agent in the intergenerational transmission of education, inducing children to forego a similar level of education (i.e., setting no floor on children’s educational attainments) or inducing children to attain a similar non-traditional credential with attendant non-economic benefits. In an analysis of mother-child pairs, I find a mother’s non-traditional credential increases the likelihood her child will complete the same level of education and such intergenerational benefits of non-traditional credentials are statistically indistinguishable from those of more traditional credentials. But, the transmission of these non-traditional credentials follows a strong pattern of reproduction. The effects of non-traditional credentials are remarkably robust in rich mediating models. It is therefore likely that important social psychological role modeling mechanisms are in play. Overall, these findings serve as a cautionary tale in using non-traditional credentials to increase educational access and expansion in the long, intergenerational run.

Author

• Megan Andrew, University of Notre Dame