AP Photo/Miguel tovAr
between the rich and the poor in Mexico has remained
largely unchanged over the past two decades. Recent
studies about intergenerational mobility indicate that
public support for education, especially for the most
needy, is the key to providing equal opportunity. The
lesson is applicable to the entire region, particularly if
it is to shore up and defend the social gains of the last
decade in the midst of an economic crisis.
Intergenerational mobility captures the extent
to which an individual’s socioeconomic position
depends on social background. In an immobile society, “accidents of birth” strongly determine individual attainment. In a mobile society, by contrast, the
opportunity for economic success (and failure) will be
more equally distributed across individuals of different social backgrounds. As such, mobility provides a
spring 2009
americas quarterly 77
