Social and Biological Influences on Status Attainment

University Of North Carolina At Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill NC

Investigators

Abstract

SES-1154990 François Nielsen University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill Abstract Social and Biological Influences on Status Attainment This project examines the roles of biological and environmental predictors of educational and socioeconomic achievement in young adults. Using the Add Health longitudinal survey the study examines outcomes among sibling pairs, classified according to degree of biological relatedness. The study adjudicates between competing claims regarding the role of biology vs. social ascription in shaping in intergenerational mobility. To that end, it is grounded in bio-medical as well as status attainment literatures from different disciplines. Structural equations models (SEMs) are applied to estimate the extent to which variation in an outcome measure depends on the shared biological vs. environmental influences experienced by siblings raised in the same family, or on specific environmental influences unique to the individual sibling. Analyses also estimate the impact of interactions among siblings (e.g., emulation or competition) and the effects of assortative mating among parents. Broader Impacts This project integrates a biomedical approach with traditional social-scientific approaches to social stratification and intergenerational mobility. The project intends to generate findings of interest to an interdisciplinary set of researchers and the general public. In addition, findings may shape policy reforms aimed at optimizing outcomes related to educational attainment and socio-economic mobility.