Posted Content•
The causal effect of education on earnings
TL;DR: This paper surveys the recent literature on the causal relationship between education and earnings and concludes that the average (or average marginal) return to education is not much below the estimate that emerges from a standard human capital earnings function fit by OLS.
Abstract: This paper surveys the recent literature on the causal relationship between education and earnings. I focus on four areas of work: theoretical and econometric advances in modelling the causal effect of education in the presence of heterogeneous returns to schooling; recent studies that use institutional aspects of the education system to form instrumental variables estimates of the return to schooling; recent studies of the earnings and schooling of twins; and recent attempts to explicitly model sources of heterogeneity in the returns to education. Consistent with earlier surveys of the literature, I conclude that the average (or average marginal) return to education is not much below the estimate that emerges from a standard human capital earnings function fit by OLS. Evidence from the latest studies of identical twins suggests a small upward "ability" bias -- on the order of 10%. A consistent finding among studies using instrumental variables based on institutional changes in the education system is that the estimated returns to schooling are 20-40% above the corresponding OLS estimates. Part of the explanation for this finding may be that marginal returns to schooling for certain subgroups -- particularly relatively disadvantaged groups with low education outcomes -- are higher than the average marginal returns to education in the population as a whole.
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01 Jan 2016
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present the evidence based on the OECD Survey of Adults Skills (PIAAC) for the comparison of the PIAAC data with the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES).
Abstract: Commissioned Paper June 2016 Earnings and Employment Benefits of Adult Higher Education in Comparative Perspective: Evidence Based on the OECD Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC) Authors: Richard Desjardins Jeongwoo Lee Suggested Citation: Desjardins, R. and Lee, J. (2016). Earnings and Employment Benefits of Adults Higher Education in Comparative Perspective: Evidence Based on the OECD Survey of Adults Skills (PIAAC). Retrieved [insert date], from [insert website]. Washington DC. Th s project has been funded by the American Institutes for Research through a contract with the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) of the U.S. Department of Education. Th s report is based on PIAAC data released in October 2013. The views expressed in this paper do not necessarily refl ct the views or policies of the American Institutes for Research, National Center for Education Statistics, or the U.S. Department of Education, nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement of same by the U.S. Government. AIR-PIAAC Contact: Author Contact: Jaleh Soroui (AIR-PIAAC Director) Saida Mamedova (Senior Research Analyst) PIAACgateway.com piaac@air.org University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Richard Desjardins at desjardins@gseis.ucla.edu; and Jeongwoo Lee at newjjallto@ucla.edu.
12 citations
Posted Content•
TL;DR: In this paper, the effects of federal research funding on 71 research universities were analyzed using the number of articles published, citations per article, patents issued, and faculty salaries, using a panel data set that spans from 1972 to 1994, and using a data set linking U.S. Congress members on the appropriations committee with their undergraduate alma mater.
Abstract: This paper estimates the effects of federal research funding on 71 research universities. We focus on the number of articles published, citations per article, patents issued, and faculty salaries. Using a panel data set that spans from 1972 to 1994, we control for potential endogeneity and omitted variables bias in our regressions by using a data set that links U.S. Congress members on the appropriations committee with their undergraduate alma mater. Alumni representation lowers the shadow price of federal funding. Using our preferred instrumental variables specification, we find an increase of $1 million in federal research funding (1993$) to a university results, on average, in 12 more articles, .50 more patents, and $152,015 more in total faculty salaries. The change in citations per article is small and imprecisely estimated. So when the shadow price of federal research funding falls, as a first approximation, universities buy more federal research funding and produce more but not necessarily higher quality research output.
12 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the effects of live-in foreign domestic workers (FDWs) on school children's educational outcomes using samples from two population censuses and a survey data set were investigated.
Abstract: This paper studies the effects of live-in foreign domestic workers (FDWs) on school children's educational outcomes using samples from two population censuses and a survey data set. The evidence consistently points to Filipino FDWs improving the educational outcomes of school children by decreasing their probability of late schooling or increasing their scores of core academic subjects. English-speaking ability and maturity are shown to be the most important assets of the Filipino FDW in improving children's educational outcomes. These findings suggest that FDWs provide an important childrearing service.
12 citations
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16 Aug 2009TL;DR: In this paper, the monetary value of educational attainment over an individual's lifetime and how they vary with education level is examined. But the authors focus on the educational attainment of individuals and do not consider the social cost of these benefits.
Abstract: Increases in educational attainment benefit the public because more highly educated people tend to pay more in taxes, are less likely to use social support programs, and are less likely to commit crimes. This volume examines the monetary value of these benefits over an individual's lifetime and how they vary with education level.
12 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors extended the model of de la Fuente (2003) by estimating the parameters by gender and introducing maternity leaves and benefits, and found that the gender gap can be explained mainly by the wage premia and labour income taxes which more than compensate the negative effects on females' returns triggered by h...
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to study the gender specific private returns on education (RE) in Europe in a comparative perspective. The authors extend the model of de la Fuente (2003) by estimating the parameters by gender and introducing maternity leaves and benefits. The paper analyses the impact of the public policy variables evaluating the elasticities with respect to unemployment benefits, marginal and average tax rates, maternity leave and childcare benefits. Design/methodology/approach – The authors estimate the Mincerian coefficients, with the Heckman’ selection model, for 12 West European countries using the EU-SILC data. The authors then use them as input to calibrate the decision model. Findings – The RE of females tend to be higher than those of males in all the Europeans countries but Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden. The gender gap can be explained mainly by the wage premia and labour income taxes which more than compensate the negative effects on females’ returns triggered by h...
12 citations