Descriptive statistics of the samples used
| . | NLSY79 . | NLSY97 . | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Variable . | Daughters . | Sons . | Daughters . | Sons . |
| Outcome Variables | ||||
| Bachelor's degree completion (%) | 24.0 | 24.2 | 37.8 | 28.9*** |
| High school/GED completion (%) | 91.1 | 89.5* | 94.0 | 92.6* |
| Years of education (mean) | 13.4 | 13.4 | 14.5 | 13.8*** |
| Family Structure at Age 17 (%) | ||||
| Living with both biological parents | 70.9 | 73.3* | 49.4 | 54.0*** |
| Living with a parent and stepparent | 8.0 | 6.9 | 14.1 | 14.3 |
| Living with a single parent | 14.3 | 15.1 | 29.4 | 26.8* |
| Not living with any parent | 6.8 | 4.7*** | 7.1 | 4.9*** |
| Maternal Education (%) | ||||
| Bottom quintile | 17.1 | 15.8 | 18.6 | 18.1 |
| Middle | 62.2 | 62.3 | 61.4 | 60.7 |
| Top quintile | 20.7 | 21.9 | 20.0 | 21.2 |
| Control Variables | ||||
| Respondent's age at interview (mean) | 33.2 | 33.1 | 32.9 | 33.0 |
| Black (%) | 13.3 | 13.3 | 15.3 | 14.6 |
| Hispanic (%) | 5.9 | 6.3 | 11.9 | 13.0 |
| Mixed race (non-Hispanic) (%) | N/A | N/A | 1.1 | 1.1 |
| Other/non-Black, non-Hispanic (%) | 80.8 | 80.4 | 71.7 | 71.3 |
| N | 3,790 | 3,632 | 3,228 | 3,151 |
| . | NLSY79 . | NLSY97 . | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Variable . | Daughters . | Sons . | Daughters . | Sons . |
| Outcome Variables | ||||
| Bachelor's degree completion (%) | 24.0 | 24.2 | 37.8 | 28.9*** |
| High school/GED completion (%) | 91.1 | 89.5* | 94.0 | 92.6* |
| Years of education (mean) | 13.4 | 13.4 | 14.5 | 13.8*** |
| Family Structure at Age 17 (%) | ||||
| Living with both biological parents | 70.9 | 73.3* | 49.4 | 54.0*** |
| Living with a parent and stepparent | 8.0 | 6.9 | 14.1 | 14.3 |
| Living with a single parent | 14.3 | 15.1 | 29.4 | 26.8* |
| Not living with any parent | 6.8 | 4.7*** | 7.1 | 4.9*** |
| Maternal Education (%) | ||||
| Bottom quintile | 17.1 | 15.8 | 18.6 | 18.1 |
| Middle | 62.2 | 62.3 | 61.4 | 60.7 |
| Top quintile | 20.7 | 21.9 | 20.0 | 21.2 |
| Control Variables | ||||
| Respondent's age at interview (mean) | 33.2 | 33.1 | 32.9 | 33.0 |
| Black (%) | 13.3 | 13.3 | 15.3 | 14.6 |
| Hispanic (%) | 5.9 | 6.3 | 11.9 | 13.0 |
| Mixed race (non-Hispanic) (%) | N/A | N/A | 1.1 | 1.1 |
| Other/non-Black, non-Hispanic (%) | 80.8 | 80.4 | 71.7 | 71.3 |
| N | 3,790 | 3,632 | 3,228 | 3,151 |
Notes: Sample weights are included. N/A = response category is not available in the 1979 wave. Respondents' age is assessed in the year that education is measured. Lower educated mothers are those in the bottom 17% of the NLSY cohort maternal educational distribution; middle educated mothers are those in the middle of the NLSY cohort maternal educational distribution; and higher educated mothers are those in the top 21% of the NLSY cohort maternal educational distribution. Asterisks indicate statistically significant differences between sons and daughters within the same cohort.
*p < .05; ***p < .001