What determines adult cognitive skills? Influences of pre-school, school, and post-school experiences in Guatemala.
What determines adult cognitive skills? Influences of pre-school, school, and post-school experiences in Guatemala.
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DOI：
10.1007/s40503-014-0004-4
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发表时间：
2014-12
影响因子：
0.5
通讯作者：
Stein AD
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Behrman JR;Hoddinott J;Maluccio JA;Soler-Hampejsek E;Behrman EL;Martorell R;Ramírez-Zea M;Stein AD
大多数关于认知技能影响的实证研究都假设它们是由学校教育产生的。利用纵向数据估计成人语言和非语言认知技能的生产函数，我们发现：(1)学校教育程度对成人语言认知技能有显著和实质性的影响，但对成人非语言认知技能没有显著影响；(2)学前和学后经历对成人认知技能也有显著的正向显著影响。即使在控制了学业成绩后，6岁时按身高记录的学前经历也显著地提高了成人的非语言认知技能。毕业后从事技能型工作对两种认知技能都有显著的正向影响。研究结果(1)强化了早期生活投资的重要性；(2)支持了儿童营养(“弗林效应”)的重要性，以及解释非语言认知技能增加的工作复杂性；(3)对报告认知技能对生产率影响的研究的解释提出了质疑，这些研究没有控制内生性；(4)指出了仅用成人学校教育程度来代表人力资本的局限性。
Most empirical investigations of the effects of cognitive skills assume that they are produced by schooling. Drawing on longitudinal data to estimate production functions for adult verbal and nonverbal cognitive skills, we find that: (1) School attainment has a significant and substantial effect on adult verbal cognitive skills but not on adult nonverbal cognitive skills; and (2) Pre-school and post-school experiences also have substantial positive significant effects on adult cognitive skills. Pre-school experiences captured by height for age at 6 years substantially and significantly increase adult nonverbal cognitive skills, even after controlling for school attainment. Post-school tenure in skilled jobs has significant positive effects on both types of cognitive skills. The findings (1) reinforce the importance of early life investments; (2) support the importance of childhood nutrition (“Flynn effect”) and work complexity in explaining increases in nonverbal cognitive skills; (3) call into question interpretations of studies reporting productivity impacts of cognitive skills that do not control for endogeneity; and (4) point to limitations in using adult school attainment alone to represent human capital.