Working Paper: NBER ID: w11113
Authors: Elizabeth U. Cascio; Ethan G. Lewis
Abstract: Is the Armed Forces Qualifying Test (AFQT) a measure of achievement or ability? The answer to this question is critical for drawing inferences from studies in which it is employed. In this paper, we test for a relationship between schooling and AFQT performance in the NLSY 79 by comparing test-takers with birthdays near state cutoff dates for school entry. We instrument for schooling at the test date with academic cohort - the year in which an individual should have entered first grade - in a model that allows age at the test date to have a direct effect on AFQT performance. This identification strategy reveals large impacts of schooling on the AFQT performance of racial minorities, providing support for the hypothesis that the AFQT measures school achievement.
Keywords: AFQT; school entry laws; schooling; racial minorities; educational achievement
JEL Codes: I20; J24; J15
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Family background and age (J19) | AFQT performance (J45) |
| Schooling (I21) | AFQT performance (J45) |
| Age at test date (C52) | AFQT performance (J45) |
| Schooling (I21) | AFQT performance for Black respondents (C83) |
| Schooling (I21) | AFQT performance for Hispanic respondents (C83) |
| Schooling (I21) | AFQT performance for White respondents (I24) |