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Dr. Doug Downey, Sociology, Ohio State University

Doug Downey
November 4, 2014
12:30PM - 1:30PM
038 Townshend Hall

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Add to Calendar 2014-11-04 12:30:00 2014-11-04 13:30:00 Dr. Doug Downey, Sociology, Ohio State University Resource Dilution Theory:  Can a Theory that Feels So Right Really Be so Wrong?Among the most replicated patterns in the social sciences is the inverse relationship between number of siblings and educational outcomes.   Resource dilution is the dominant sociological explanation.  Simply put, parents’ resources (e.g., time, energy, money) are finite and spread more thinly as siblings are added to the family.  This straightforward and intuitive account, however, fails to garner consistent empirical support.  For example, instrumental variable analysis suggests that sibship size effects are small or nonexistent.  And in some countries, sibship size is unrelated, or evenly positively related, to educational outcomes.  Given these challenges, I reconsider Resource Dilution Theory’s appeal, discuss its current woes, and ask whether it has any remaining value.    038 Townshend Hall Institute for Population Research popcenter@osu.edu America/New_York public

Resource Dilution Theory:  Can a Theory that Feels So Right Really Be so Wrong?

Among the most replicated patterns in the social sciences is the inverse relationship between number of siblings and educational outcomes.   Resource dilution is the dominant sociological explanation.  Simply put, parents’ resources (e.g., time, energy, money) are finite and spread more thinly as siblings are added to the family.  This straightforward and intuitive account, however, fails to garner consistent empirical support.  For example, instrumental variable analysis suggests that sibship size effects are small or nonexistent.  And in some countries, sibship size is unrelated, or evenly positively related, to educational outcomes.  Given these challenges, I reconsider Resource Dilution Theory’s appeal, discuss its current woes, and ask whether it has any remaining value.