Like father, like son. Intergenerational transmission of economic status through the channel of personality

In his paper the author demonstrates that in the intergenerational similarities of earning there is an indirect effect which can be observed through the intergenerational similarities in personality traits. Using the data of the Hungarian Household Panel Survey he decomposes the correlation coefficient in earning between the head of the household and his/her child. He also points out that personality traits are an important determinator of wages even beside human capital variables. Because personality may be shaped by success or failure on the labour market, he tries to analyse the data of those persons without labour market experience. The results show that personality has a long-term effect on wages.