Correlation between cognitive ability and educational attainment weakens over birth cohorts
Link to article:
Authors:
Van Hootegem, Arno, Ole Røgeberg, Bernt Bratsberg & Torkild Hovde Lyngstad
Year:
2023
Reference:
13, 17747Summary
Educational attainment is a key indicator of status and opportunity in meritocratic societies. However, it is unclear how educational expansion has affected the link between cognitive abilities and educational attainment. As a result, this study examines the correlation between cognitive ability and educational attainment across male birth cohorts in Norway. Utilizing administrative register data covering more than four decades, we investigate multiple measures of educational attainment and their connection to cognitive abilities. Our findings reveal a consistent decline in the correlation over time. These findings question the assumed shift towards meritocracy in educational systems and highlight a more complex relationship between cognitive ability and educational attainment.
Project:
Oppdragsgiver: ForskningsrådetOppdragsgivers prosjektnr.: 300917
Frisch prosjekt: 1676 - Intergenerational Mobility and Labor Market Inclusion
