Implications of the genomic revolution for education research and policy

Morris, Tim; Hinke, Stephanie von; Pike, Lindsey; Ingram, Neil; Smith, George Davey; Munafò, Marcus R.; Davies, Neil M

doi:10.1002/berj.3784

Cited by 5 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 93 publications

(104 reference statements)

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“…Genetically informed data offers great analytical value. It can provide more robust causal inference (Davey Smith & Hemani, 2014), opportunities for triangulation of evidence (Munafò & Davey Smith, 2018), greater understanding of the intergenerational transmission of traits (Morris et al, 2022), and a better understanding of macro-level social and environmental trends (Engzell & Tropf, 2019). These latter two points are of key interest for studies of social mobility.…”

Section: Intergenerational Social Mobilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

How the genetics of cognitive and non-cognitive skills influence intergenerational social mobility

Bonomi Bezzo,

Hughes,

Wolfram

et al. 2024

Preprint

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Research on intergenerational transmission of advantage highlights the enduring influence of parental socio-economic status on offspring’s social mobility. Besides parental background, individual skills and choices significantly shape adult socio-economic position. Our study stands out on two dimensions. One, it investigates the interplay between cognitive and non-cognitive skills, social origins, genetic predispositions with a systematic focus on gender similarities and differences. Two, it explores the influence of these factors on educational attainment and also on social class destinations. We use data from the 1958 UK Birth Cohort study. Gender-specific patterns reveal women's greater direct effect of observed skills on educational attainment, contrasting with men's stronger correlations with parental status and social class. Overall, while parental socio-economic status and genetic predispositions are influential, observed skills exert a stronger impact on socio-economic outcomes, especially among men and those from higher socio-economic backgrounds.

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Section: Intergenerational Social Mobilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

How the genetics of cognitive and non-cognitive skills influence intergenerational social mobility

Bonomi Bezzo,

Hughes,

Wolfram

et al. 2024

Preprint

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“…The biological foundation for differences in educational and other dimensions of socioeconomic success is a controversial topic both in the scientific literature and public debate (Harden, 2022(Harden, , 2021Mills and Tropf, 2020;Morris et al, 2022;Plomin and von Stumm, 2018). Additionally, it should be acknowledged that high heritability does not necessarily indicate that a society is unequal (Herd et al, 2019;Rimfeld et al, 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nature’s Curriculum: Genes Linked to Educational Attainment and Adult Socioeconomic Status in a Nordic Welfare State

Dobewall,

Vaalavuo,

Böckerman

et al. 2024

Preprint

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Research in sociogenomics is interested in how genes, alongside family background and institutional context, influence our life chances. Recent findings show genetics influence on educational attainment, but their effects on socioeconomic outcomes that follow, especially in egalitarian Nordic welfare states, remain less understood. We analyze two genetically-informed Finnish datasets, encompassing longitudinal register information on earnings, employment, unemployment, occupational status, and social assistance receipt (n=31,622). Genetic endowment towards educational attainment was measured with polygenic scores (EA PGS). The role of achieved level of education and family background were examined, considering generational differences pre- and post-Finland's comprehensive school reform of the 1970s that aimed to promote equality of opportunity. In the younger generation, EA PGS were not predictive for later outcomes after controlling for the achieved education level. A notable exception was occupational status. In contrast, the older generation EA PGS predicted later socioeconomic outcomes beyond education, indicating relationships not fully explained by schooling. The years of education completed, unlike parental income, moderated the effect of the EA PGS. The findings contribute important insights to the ongoing debate in the Nordic welfare states on balancing equality of opportunity with meritocratic principles and for other societies on their path to becoming more egalitarian.

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“…Exams taken in adolescence are highly predictive of final educational attainment in adulthood. The correlations between parents and their children could be due to direct genetic inheritance, effects of parents on their children via parenting behaviours, assortative mating, or demographic differences across the population [2]. The relative contribution of direct genetic inheritance and factors such as parenting is unclear [3].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Previous studies have used trio designs to investigate the associations of polygenic indices and educational outcomes in the Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Cohort Study (MoBa). [10] However, it is possible to go further and estimate both the direct effects of genotype on the children and the effects of parents on their children via Mendelian randomization and instrumental variable analysis [2,11]. Figure 1 illustrates these relationships.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Intergenerational effects of parental educational attainment on parenting and childhood educational outcomes: Evidence from MoBa using within-family Mendelian randomization

Havdahl

Hughes

Sanderson

et al. 2023

Preprint

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The intergenerational transmission of educational attainment from parents to their children is one of the most important and studied relationships in social science. Longitudinal studies have found strong associations between parents' and their children's educational outcomes, which could be due to the effects of parents. Here we provide new evidence about whether parents' educational attainment affects their parenting behaviours and children's early educational outcomes using within-family Mendelian randomization and data from 40,907 genotyped parent-child trios from the Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Cohort (MoBa) study. We found evidence suggesting that parents' educational attainment affects their children's educational outcomes from age 5 to 14. More studies are needed to provide more samples of parent-child trios and assess the potential consequences of selection bias and grandparental effects.

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Implications of the genomic revolution for education research and policy

Abstract: This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Cited by 5 publications

References 93 publications

How the genetics of cognitive and non-cognitive skills influence intergenerational social mobility

How the genetics of cognitive and non-cognitive skills influence intergenerational social mobility

Nature’s Curriculum: Genes Linked to Educational Attainment and Adult Socioeconomic Status in a Nordic Welfare State

Intergenerational effects of parental educational attainment on parenting and childhood educational outcomes: Evidence from MoBa using within-family Mendelian randomization

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