Educational homogamy, values, activities, and inequality: an intergenerational perspective

Educational homogamy, defined as individuals with similar educational backgrounds who marry or form relationships, is increasingly identified with rising levels of inequality. Bourdieu’s concepts of field of forces and field of struggles are used to examine intergenerational educational homogamy dynamics. Through correspondence analyses with 28 years of the longitudinal data from Paths on Life’s Way Project, this study determined the interdependence of educational homogamy of two generations – grandparents (Generation One) and parents (Generation Two) – on the educational values parents hold for their children (Generation Three) – and the subsequent educational activities in which their children engage. Findings reveal that despite the intact nature of the field of forces among Generation One and Generation Two educational homogamy groups, most values held for and activities undertaken by Generation Three are not specific to homogamy groups. One important exception stands out: values held toward university attendance by Generation Two for their children (Generation Three) distinguishes the homogamy group with high levels of education from the group with low educational levels. This field of forces difference suggests the presence of accumulated capital across generations that manifests itself in values toward university study with long term implications for future life chances.