Intergenerational Networks, Unemployment, and Persistent Inequality in South Africa by Jeremy Magruder :: NEUDC 2007 Papers :: Northeast Universities Development Consortium Conference :: Center for International Development at Harvard University (CID)

This paper examines the role of parents in helping children secure employment in South Africa. I use longitudinal data on young South Africans to examine the covariance of children’s employment with parent’s usefulness in job search. I find that fathers serve as useful network connections to their sons (and not daughters), but that mothers do not seem to be useful network connections for any of their children. The possibilities of specific human capital, correlated networks, and multiple non-labor force choices are considered and do not alter the estimated father-son effect. The results suggest that part of the decline in observed economic mobility in South Africa is attributable to the increase in importance of small-scale networks along with high unemployment. JEL Codes: O12,J62,J21