The American Dream: Now a Coin Flip for Mobility

A synthesis of Raj Chetty’s work shows the share of children who out-earn their parents at the same age dropped from about 90% for those born in 1940 to roughly 50% for those born in the 1980s. The piece frames this as a debate: is the fall driven more by slower overall growth or by more unequal sharing of that growth? Chetty argues mobility hinges on broadly shared growth, while some scholars contend faster growth could restore mobility. The findings carry significant policy implications for reviving the American dream.