Industrialization and Intergenerational Mobility in Sweden

Abstract

The relationship between industrialization and intergenerational mobility has been a topic of discussion for over forty years. In this article both total mobility and relative mobility chances are studied in the decades preceding industrialization and the decades during industrialization. A high-quality data set is used covering the male population of a region in the north of Sweden during the 19th century. Total intergenerational mobility increased during industrialization until, at the end of the century, both industrialization and the growth of mobility stagnated. Sectorial barriers resulted in unequal relative mobility chances before and also during industrialization. However, sons from self-employed classes were less likely to inherit the class position of their father after the onset of industrialization. At the same time, mobility between classes differing in status became less frequent. These results show a decline in the importance of the direct transfer of resources between generations and may indicate the increasing importance of education.