Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/126509 
Year of Publication: 
2014
Series/Report no.: 
LICOS Discussion Paper No. 353
Publisher: 
Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, LICOS Centre for Institutions and Economic Performance, Leuven
Abstract: 
We propose a model in which parents have a subjective belief about the impact of their investment on the early skill formation of their children. This subjective belief is determined in part by locus of control (LOC), i.e., the extent to which individuals believe that their actions can influence future outcomes. Consistent with the theory, we show that maternal LOC measured at the 12th week of gestation strongly predicts early and late child cognitive and noncognitive outcomes. We also utilize the variation in maternal LOC to help improve the specification typically used in the estimation of skill production function parameters.
Subjects: 
locus of control
parental investment
human capital accumulation
early skill formation
ALSPAC
JEL: 
J01
I31
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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