The Importance of Mobility Across Generations

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In Denmark, family influence is about as strong as it is in the U.S., according to a new study. The research found that intergenerational mobility across generations was not so different from the United States. "The finding is so dramatic and challenges right at the core of what Denmark thinks it's all about," says co-author Razzman.

Economist and Nobel Laureate James Heckman of the University of Chicago talks about inequality and economic mobility with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Drawing on research on inequality in Denmark with Rasmus Landerso, Heckman argues that despite the efforts of the Danish welfare state to provide equal access to education, there is little difference in economic mobility between the United States and Denmark. The conversation includes a general discussion of economic mobility in the United States along with a critique of Chetty and others' work on the power of neighborhood to determine one's economic destiny.