Intergenerational income mobility in Turkey

Abstract

In this study, we examine intergenerational income mobility in Turkey using data from the Turkish Statistical Institute’s Survey of Income and Living Conditions and the TS2SLS methodology. Our findings reveal an intergenerational earnings elasticity of 0.51 between fathers and sons and 1 between fathers and daughters. This gender disparity stems from historically low female labor force participation and self-selection of women into employment in Turkey. Our estimates for household income elasticity for both sons and daughters are similar, at around 0.8. We also observe a slight decrease in intergenerational mobility for more recent birth cohorts, consistent with trends in other countries. Our further analysis using rank-rank slopes and transition matrices indicates weak intergenerational rank mobility and strong persistence at both ends of the income distribution in Turkey.