Intergenerational occupational and income mobility in Brazil bet ween the 1990s and 2000s

Abstract

This article presents the historical trends in intergenerational income mobility in Brazil between the 1990s and 2000s, based on an analysis of two age cohorts. The findings indicate a significant increase in social mobility. A second objective is to compare economic and sociological approaches to intergenerational mobility, utilizing trends in income mobility and occupational status mobility for this purpose. While the former rose substantially, the latter increased much more modestly. Finally, the article analyses the relation between intergenerational mobility in education and the other two types of mobility. Breaking down income and occupational mobilities into those factors that directly link parents to children (pure inheritance) and other factors mediated by education (mediated inheritance) reveals significantly different results for income and occupation.