Working Paper: NBER ID: w30747
Authors: Dora Costa; Coralee Lewis; Noelle Yetter
Abstract: This paper introduces four new intergenerational and multigenerational datasets which follow both sons and daughters and which can be used to study the persistence of longevity, socioeconomic status, family structure, and geographic mobility across generations. The data follow the children of Black and White Union Army veterans from birth to death, linking them to the available censuses. The White samples include an over-sample of children of ex-POWs. A separate collection links grandchildren of White Union Army veterans to their death records. The data were created with high quality manual linkage procedures utilizing a wide variety of records to establish links.
Keywords: intergenerational datasets; longevity; socioeconomic status; Union Army veterans
JEL Codes: I14; J01; J10; N01
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| inadequate investments in children's health and education during critical developmental periods (I15) | intergenerational transmission of poor health and socioeconomic disadvantage (I14) |
| early investments in health care access and education (I14) | breaking the cycle of poverty (I32) |
| paternal wartime experiences (POW experience) (H56) | descendants' longevity and social status (D15) |
| inadequate investments in children's health (I14) | poor health outcomes in subsequent generations (I14) |
| inadequate investments in children's education (I24) | lower socioeconomic status in subsequent generations (I24) |