Cato’s Brink Lindsey, writing in The Wall Street Journal, says that economics is not the real inequality problem for the schools:
Cut through all the statistical squid ink surrounding the issue of economic inequality, and you’ll find a phenomenon that genuinely deserves public concern.
Over the past quarter-century or so, the return on human capital has risen significantly. Or to put it another way, the opportunity cost of failing to develop human capital is now much higher than it used to be. The wage premium associated with a college degree has jumped to around 70% in recent years from around 30% in 1980; the graduate degree premium has soared to over 100% from 50%. Meanwhile, dropping out of high school now all but guarantees socioeconomic failure.
In part this development is cause for celebration. Rising demand for analytical and interpersonal skills has been driving the change, and surely it is good news that economic signals now so strongly encourage the development of human talent. Yet — and here is the cause for concern — the supply of skilled people is responding sluggishly to the increased demand.
Despite the strong incentives, … Something is plainly hindering the effectiveness of the market’s carrots and sticks. And that something is culture. … The problem is not lack of opportunity. If it were, the country wouldn’t be a magnet for illegal immigrants. The problem is a lack of elementary self-discipline: failing to stay in school, failing to live within the law, failing to get and stay married to the mother or father of your children. The prevalence of all these pathologies reflects a dysfunctional culture that fails to invest in human capital.
