Inequality of Access to Opportunities and Socioeconomic Mobility : Evidence from the Life in Transition Survey
Expectations of future socioeconomic mobility are an important determinant of cur- rent policy preferences. But how may these expectations be formed? Using Life in Transition survey data for a large set of transition economies and several Western E...
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| Format: | Working Paper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2019
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/691741549375632212/Inequality-of-Access-to-Opportunities-and-Socioeconomic-Mobility-Evidence-from-the-Life-in-Transition-Survey http://hdl.handle.net/10986/31229 |
| Summary: | Expectations of future socioeconomic
mobility are an important determinant of cur- rent policy
preferences. But how may these expectations be formed? Using
Life in Transition survey data for a large set of transition
economies and several Western European countries, this paper
examines the link between beliefs about the importance of
personal connections for getting access to opportunities,
such as a good job or university education, and expectations
of future socioeconomic mobility. The analysis of survey
data finds evidence that: (i) lack of connections is
associated with expectations of a lower position on the
future social ladder; and (ii) when informal connections are
unavailable, it matters for your aspirations whether you
perceive connections to be vital or not. There is also some
evidence that in the European Union, where formal
institutions are stronger, individuals are less likely to
resort to informal institutions such as personal
connections, even when these are available. Perceptions of
unequal access to opportunities are also linked with
stronger redistributive preferences. Finally, there is some
evidence that unequal access to opportunities is associated
not only with lower intragenerational mobility, but also
with lower intergenerational mobility. |
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