Research has shown that intergenerational mobility is higher among individuals with a college degree than those with lower levels of schooling. However, mobility declines among graduate degree holders. This finding questions the meritocratic power of higher education. Prior research has been hampered, however, by the small samples of advanced degree holders in representative surveys. Drawing on a large longitudinal data set of PhD holders—the Survey of Doctorate Recipients—this study examines intergenerational mobility among the American educational elite, separately for men and women and different racial/ethnic groups. Results show substantial mobility among PhD holders. The association between parents’ education and adult children’s earnings is moderate among men and nonexistent among women with doctoral degrees. However, women’s earnings converge to an average level that is much lower than men’s, signaling ‘‘perverse openness’’ for women even at the top of the educational distribution. Among men, there is variation in mobility by race and ethnicity. The intergenerational socioeconomic association is null for Asian men, small for white and black men, and more pronounced for Hispanics. Educational and occupational mediators account for intergenerational association among blacks and whites but not Hispanic men. A doctoral degree largely detaches individuals from their social origins in the United States, but it does not eliminate all sources of inequality.

中文翻译：

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教育分布顶端的代际流动

研究表明，大学学历的人之间的代际流动性高于学历较低的人。但是，研究生学位持有者的流动性下降。这一发现对高等教育的精英能力提出了质疑。但是，代表性研究中的少量高级学位持有者样本阻碍了先前的研究。该研究利用博士学位持有者的大型纵向数据集（博士接收者调查）来研究美国教育精英之间的代际流动性，分别针对男性和女性以及不同种族/族裔群体。结果表明，博士学位持有者之间的流动性很大。父母受教育程度与成年子女的收入之间的联系在男性中中等，而在具有博士学位的女性中则不存在。然而，妇女的收入收敛到远低于男子的平均水平，这表明即使在教育分布的顶部，妇女的“不正当开放性”。在男性中，流动性因种族和种族而异。对于亚洲男性而言，代际社会经济关联是无效的，对于白人和黑人而言，代际社会经济关联无效，而对于西班牙裔则更为明显。教育和职业调解员是黑人和白人之间的代际关联，但西班牙裔男子则不然。博士学位在很大程度上使个人脱离了他们在美国的社会血统，但并不能消除所有的不平等根源。对于亚洲男性而言，代际社会经济关联是无效的，对于白人和黑人而言，代际社会经济关联则无效，而对于西班牙裔则更为明显。教育和职业调解员是黑人和白人之间的代际关联，但西班牙裔男子则不然。博士学位在很大程度上使个人脱离了他们在美国的社会血统，但并不能消除所有的不平等根源。对于亚洲男性而言，代际社会经济关联是无效的，对于白人和黑人而言，代际社会经济关联则无效，而对于西班牙裔则更为明显。教育和职业调解员是黑人和白人之间的代际关联，但西班牙裔男子则不然。博士学位在很大程度上使个人脱离了他们在美国的社会血统，但并不能消除所有的不平等根源。