Gender Gaps in PISA Test Scores: The Impact of Social Norms and the Mother’s Transmission of Role Attitudes

Abstract

The existence of gender gaps in test scores has been documented in the relevant literature for a wide range of countries. In particular, the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) conducted by the OECD over the past ten years reveals that on average girls underperform (outperform) boys in maths (reading) scores in most of the countries that take part in the evaluation programme. Focussing primarily on maths we find that differences in culture and social norms across countries and across regions within the same country are crucial determinants in understanding gender differences in PISA 2009 scores: girls perform relatively better in societies where gender equality is enhanced, and the effect varies over the distribution of scores. In addition, we find substantial evidence for the intergenerational transmission of gender role attitudes within the family, especially from mothers to daughters, as the relative performance of girls with respect to boys is better in families where the mother is active in the labour market.