Intergenerational mobility of earnings in South Korea

The purpose of this study is to estimate the extent of intergenerational mobility of earnings in the Republic of Korea (South Korea). The elasticity of children's earnings with respect to parent's earnings is estimated using household microdata. When the simulation extrapolation (SIMEX) method is applied along with the multiyear-average method, the elasticity is estimated to be 0.24 or less for sons approximately 30 years old. When the two-stage approach is applied, the elasticity is approximately 0.25 for sons and 0.35 for daughters in their 30s, and approximately 0.35 for sons and 0.4 for daughters from 25 to 54 years old. Nonparametric regression illustrates that sons from low-income families in the younger generation have more equal opportunities than in the older generation (C) 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.